Maryam Shah

ISLAMABAD: The official White House account this week posted an AI-generated image of President Donald Trump striding across a frozen landscape toward Greenland, hand-in-wing with a penguin carrying a US flag. The caption was brief and cryptic: &ldquo;Embrace the penguin.&rdquo; Shared on X, the post raced past 30 million views, igniting confusion, mockery, and rapid-fire debate across platforms. Trump&rsquo;s penguin post landed against the backdrop of renewed US interest in Greenland.&nbsp; Earlier this week, the president said there is a &ldquo;framework of a future deal&rdquo; involving the semi-autonomous Danish territory, arguing Greenland is critical to US security plans, including a proposed &ldquo;Golden Dome&rdquo; missile defense system, and to access strategic minerals essential for modern technology. But the problem, critics quickly noted, was zoological, not political.&nbsp; Penguins simply do not live in Greenland, the Arctic, or anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere. Every penguin species exists exclusively in the Southern Hemisphere, primarily in Antarctica. &ldquo;There are no penguins in Greenland,&rdquo; the account PatriotTakes wrote, adding: &ldquo;Perhaps you shouldn&rsquo;t have dismantled the Department of Education so quickly.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-0" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-0&features=eyJ0ZndfdGltZWxpbmVfbGlzdCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOltdLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X2ZvbGxvd2VyX2NvdW50X3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9iYWNrZW5kIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19yZWZzcmNfc2Vzc2lvbiI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZm9zbnJfc29mdF9pbnRlcnZlbnRpb25zX2VuYWJsZWQiOnsiYnVja2V0Ijoib24iLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X21peGVkX21lZGlhXzE1ODk3Ijp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRyZWF0bWVudCIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfZXhwZXJpbWVudHNfY29va2llX2V4cGlyYXRpb24iOnsiYnVja2V0IjoxMjA5NjAwLCJ2ZXJzaW9uIjpudWxsfSwidGZ3X3Nob3dfYmlyZHdhdGNoX3Bpdm90c19lbmFibGVkIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6Im9uIiwidmVyc2lvbiI6bnVsbH0sInRmd19kdXBsaWNhdGVfc2NyaWJlc190b19zZXR0aW5ncyI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdXNlX3Byb2ZpbGVfaW1hZ2Vfc2hhcGVfZW5hYmxlZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdmlkZW9faGxzX2R5bmFtaWNfbWFuaWZlc3RzXzE1MDgyIjp7ImJ1Y2tldCI6InRydWVfYml0cmF0ZSIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfbGVnYWN5X3RpbWVsaW5lX3N1bnNldCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOnRydWUsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9LCJ0ZndfdHdlZXRfZWRpdF9mcm9udGVuZCI6eyJidWNrZXQiOiJvbiIsInZlcnNpb24iOm51bGx9fQ%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2014835024999186902&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=ebfb1c7c4793dc4344a331bf075173eae200a796&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 942px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi offered a shorter correction: &ldquo;Wrong hemisphere.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-1" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-1&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2014833837960786337&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=ebfb1c7c4793dc4344a331bf075173eae200a796&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 822px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div>Others went sharper. Conservative commentator Erick Erickson joked that the administration &ldquo;must be planning to invade Antarctica.&rdquo;<div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-2" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-2&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2014845138988634474&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=ebfb1c7c4793dc4344a331bf075173eae200a796&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden; width: 0px; height: 0px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div> Danish MP Rasmus Jarlov delivered the harshest line: &ldquo;The message from the White House is clear: Trump belongs in Greenland as much as penguins do.&rdquo;<div class="fr-embed"><div class="twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered" style="display: flex; max-width: 550px; width: 100%; margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px;"><iframe id="twitter-widget-4" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="true" title="X Post" src="https://platform.twitter.com/embed/Tweet.html?dnt=false&embedId=twitter-widget-4&features=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%3D%3D&frame=false&hideCard=false&hideThread=false&id=2014871105450791309&lang=en&origin=https%3A%2F%2Fmain.d1wrm1qseko1cp.amplifyapp.com%2Farticles%2Fnew%2F&sessionId=ebfb1c7c4793dc4344a331bf075173eae200a796&theme=light&widgetsVersion=2615f7e52b7e0%3A1702314776716&width=550px" style="position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 846px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</iframe></div></div> Some users interpreted the image as a nod to the &ldquo;nihilist penguin&rdquo; meme circulating online, inspired by Werner Herzog&rsquo;s 2007 documentary, &quot;Encounters at the End of the World.&quot; The film features an Ad&eacute;lie penguin walking alone toward the Antarctic mountains. A moment Herzog famously frames as a doomed, existential march. The White House did not immediately clarify the intent of the post. The Department of Homeland Security later shared a related image, reinforcing the impression that the symbolism was intentional rather than accidental. A familiar patternThe episode fits a broader pattern in Trump&rsquo;s online presence since returning to office. He remains one of the most prolific political figures on social media, regularly pushing out memes, AI-generated images and content engineered for virality alongside policy messaging. A recent Wired investigation reported that Trump personally types roughly 5% of his posts. The rest are produced by aides, including Natalie Harp and Dan Scavino, who convert the president&rsquo;s dictation into a steady stream of attention-grabbing content. &ldquo;The entire ethos and aesthetic of this administration is spectacle and subversion of norms,&rdquo; Dannagal Young, director of the Center for Political Communication at the University of Delaware, told CNN. &ldquo;You don&rsquo;t do that through deliberation or argument, but through symbols.&rdquo; TikTok politics, penguin editionTrump&rsquo;s meme-forward strategy is widely seen as an attempt to connect with younger audiences. During the 2024 campaign, his TikTok account became one of the platform&rsquo;s fastest-growing, tapping into Gen Z&rsquo;s preference for visual, ironic and remixable content. The penguin post shows both the upside and downside of that approach. It captured massive attention, but lost narrative control almost instantly, as users reframed it through jokes, fact-checks and satire. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson defended the strategy in a statement to CNN, saying: &ldquo;The success of the White House&rsquo;s social media pages speak for itself. Through engaging posts and banger memes, we are successfully communicating the President&rsquo;s extremely popular agenda.&rdquo; For the internet, though, the takeaway was simpler: if the White House wanted everyone talking, the penguin delivered, even if it waddled in from the wrong hemisphere.

Americas

A viral White House penguin meme sparks laughs online, but lands amid Trump’s renewed push for Greenland, blending Gen Z internet culture with real geopolitical ambition.

Penguins, memes and Greenland: Trump’s viral post breaks the internet

Web Desk

ISLAMABAD: Tumblers have existed for decades, but Stanley&rsquo;s Quencher turned a simple water bottle into a viral phenomenon that still remains relevant today. The company single-handedly redefined the meaning of quiet luxury consumerism, driving the brand&rsquo;s sales from $73 million in 2019 to $750 million by 2023, a figure widely quoted by international media. Once primarily marketed to blue-collar workers and campers, Stanley built its reputation on durability, offering a product backed by a lifetime guarantee. The brand then supercharged its growth by appealing to a demographic it had largely overlooked in its first century: women. Where it all began: the social media crazeSpeaking of durability, the tumbler&rsquo;s rise to fame began with a single viral moment in 2023. A TikTok video showing a woman&rsquo;s car completely destroyed in a fire, with only her Stanley tumbler left untouched, quickly captured the internet&rsquo;s attention. Stanley&rsquo;s president responded with a video offering to replace her car, a gesture that humanized the brand and amplified the story. On TikTok alone, the clip garnered more than 7 million views.<div class="fr-embed"><blockquote class="tiktok-embed" style="max-width: 605px;min-width: 325px;"><a target="_blank" title="@stanleybrand" href="https://www.tiktok.com/@stanleybrand?refer=embed" style="color: rgb(0, 115, 230);">@stanleybrand</a><a title="stitch" target="_blank" href="https://www.tiktok.com/tag/stitch?refer=embed" style="color: rgb(0, 115, 230);">#stitch</a> with @Danielle&nbsp;<a target="_blank" title="♬ original sound - Stanley Brand" href="https://www.tiktok.com/music/original-sound-7302186693531159339?refer=embed" style="color: rgb(0, 115, 230);">♬ original sound - Stanley Brand</a></blockquote></div> Long before this moment, however, the groundwork had already been laid by &ldquo;The Buy Guide,&rdquo; a group of lifestyle influencers who began promoting the Quencher back in 2019. Their endorsements introduced the tumbler to a largely female audience and helped spark the initial wave of interest. Once the fire video reignited attention, the social media wave intensified. TikTok, Instagram, and other platforms flooded with user-generated content: unboxing videos, color-collection hauls, morning and gym routines, and durability tests. Influencers and everyday users alike shared their Stanley stories, creating a network of authentic promotion no traditional ad campaign could replicate. The Stanley effect: the power of marketing&nbsp;Stanley did not miss the opportunity and turned it into a marketing masterclass that will be studied for years to come. Instead of reinventing the product, the brand focused on expanding its appeal. Limited-edition colour drops, seasonal launches, and coordinated influencer partnerships drove demand and created urgency. The Quencher became an accessory for the &ldquo;clean girl&rdquo; aesthetic. Each new release triggered waves of online content, and &ldquo;fear of missing out&rdquo; (FOMO) led to people lining up at stores and a robust resale market. Sellouts happened within minutes. Stanley quickly joined the ranks of status-driven products, comparable to other popular products like&nbsp;Hydro Flask, Yeti, Owala, and Starbucks&#39; seasonal cups, but its widespread online presence and collectible appeal stood out and outperformed these established premium companies. Terence Reilly, who previously led the viral rise of Crocs, became Stanley&#39;s global president in 2020 and doubled down on this new direction. &ldquo;In 2022, we experienced record-breaking business growth and renewed brand awareness. With this success comes the opportunity to further invest in things we care about: delivering more sustainable products, building inclusion into everything we do, and supporting our employees and communities,&rdquo; said Reilly in the official Stanley impact report 2023. What do the numbers say?Stanley&rsquo;s parent company, Stanley Black &amp; Decker, reported full-year net sales of $15.78 billion in 2023, with the Tools &amp; Outdoor segment, which includes Stanley drinkware, accounting for $13.37 billion. The fourth quarter of 2023 alone saw Tools &amp; Outdoor net sales of $3.15 billion, with a segment margin of 9.3 %, up from 0.1 % in Q4 2022. Free cash flow for the year was $853 million, and inventory was reduced by $1.1 billion versus the end of 2022. These figures show how the Quencher&#39;s viral popularity boosted Stanley&#39;s sales while also contributing to the parent company&#39;s overall growth and profitability. Infiltrating the Pakistani market: The knock offs&nbsp;In Pakistan, Stanley emerged as a niche yet visible trend, particularly among urban millennials and Gen Z consumers. &nbsp;While Stanley does not yet have a large official retail presence, tumblers are available through specialty importers, online stores, and personal shoppers from the UAE and US via Instagram and Daraz. Prices for authentic 40 oz Quenchers range from Rs 4,000&ndash;20,000, depending on the seller and edition. Limited stock and social-media-driven hype have created an active market which has fueled a knock off market. There is a thriving market for replicas and &ldquo;inspired by&rdquo; designs, most of which are locally imported from China. These tumblers closely mimic the original in shape, color, and branding, though they are generally made with lower-grade materials. Knock-offs sell for PKR 1,000&ndash;3,000, making the trend accessible to a wider audience while maintaining the visual appeal and aspirational value of the Quencher. Stanley&rsquo;s rise from a rugged, utilitarian brand to a global lifestyle icon is a case study in how storytelling, community-driven marketing, and cultural relevance can transform even the simplest product.&nbsp;What began as an unassuming tumbler evolved into a symbol of identity, aspiration, and modern consumer behavior, fueled not by traditional advertising, but by authentic digital advocacy and strategic brand agility.&nbsp;Even in markets like Pakistan, where official retail presence is limited, the Quencher&rsquo;s appeal has seeped into daily life through imports, influencers, and an inevitable wave of knock-offs. In the end, Stanley&rsquo;s success reveals a deeper truth about today&rsquo;s consumers: they don&rsquo;t just buy products. They buy stories, status, and a sense of belonging.&nbsp;

Viral

Stanley’s Quencher turned a century-old tumbler into a global viral phenomenon, driving sales from $73 million in 2019 to $750 million in 2023. Its marketing strategy, blending social media, influencers, and limited-edition releases, will be studied for years to come.

Articles tagged with "Viral"

Penguins, memes and Greenland: Trump’s viral post breaks the internet

How a 113-year-old water bottle became a pop culture status symbol