Steak-umm Starts Bizarre Twitter Beef With Neil DeGrasse Tyson

Amazingly, many experts took the side of the processed meat product over the celebrity astrophysicist.

Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson recently found himself in a bizarre Twitter beef with, of all things, Steak-umm.

Even stranger: Many experts took the side of the processed meat product.

It all started on Sunday after Tyson tweeted out, “The good thing about Science is that it’s true, whether or not you believe in it.”

Although the tweet attracted more than 128,000 likes, it didn’t get much love from Steak-umm on Monday night.

Steak-umm then added a little more meat to its contention, saying that, ironically, Tyson’s tweet “may influence people to be more skeptical” of science “in a time of unprecedented misinformation.”

“Science is an ever refining process to find truth, not a dogma,” Steak-umm said, adding, “no matter his intent, this message isn’t helpful.”

The company then transparently admitted the reason for going after Tyson about the difference between “science” and “truth.” Spoiler alert: It involves selling processed meat to home cooks.

Some people suspected Steak-umm’s stance was the result of a recent change in the company’s social media staff, a charge the company denied.

Still, people had questions ...

Many people, including some members of the medical and scientific communities, took the side of Steak-umm.

Tyson hasn’t directly responded to Steak-umm, but he posted a tweet linking to a 2016 article he wrote titled “What Science Is, and How and Why It Works.”

The science blog IFLScience.com noted that the post “essentially agrees” with Steak-umm and “makes the distinction between truth (established facts) and the scientific method.”

It added: “So calm down, everybody. Though his tweet had people riled ― and not without merit ― his longer-form thoughts are well aligned with meat.”

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Before You Go

Fast Food Twitter Accounts, From Best To Worst
Dairy Queen(01 of11)
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@DairyQueen
We don't know why, but Dairy Queen is tweeting way too much about its salads. The chain's tweets also kind of put us to sleep. With tweets like, "We’ve all made our share of summer memories. Share your favorites with us!" they may as well not be tweeting.
(credit:Twitter/Dairy Queen)
Subway(02 of11)
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@Subway
Subway's Twitter account is the opposite of noteworthy -- and we can't figure out why it has so many followers. A recent tweet reads, "Bacon + egg + cheese = Classic. And when you add avocado, you reach Next Level Breakfast." Sorry, was that supposed to get us out of bed? Because it just put us to sleep. The photos are generic, the tweets are blasé, and it pretty much just promotes menu items. We're unenthused.
(credit:Twitter/Subway)
Wendy's(03 of11)
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@Wendys
"It’s not “technically” bacon. It’s actually #bacon," reads one of Wendy's recent tweets. Shooting yourself in the foot there, Wendy's? What the hell do you mean it's not "technically" bacon but #bacon and why do you think that's a good idea? Wendy's, we're sorry, but your Twitter presence needs some work. Also, we're really not into the latest campaign to tweet how Wendy's new salad creations inspire fashion, which only includes photos of women's clothes. So salads are just for the ladies this summer? We're not down with this.
(credit:Twitter/Wendy's)
Chipotle(04 of11)
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@Chipotle
Chipotle does a good job of promoting itself and special events on Twitter, but its tweets aren't altogether that interesting or entertaining. The fast-casual chain makes good use of photos, but it doesn't seem to be having any fun. Lighten up, Chipotle! Everyone likes you -- you can afford to play around a bit.
(credit:Twitter/Chipotle)
Krispy Kreme(05 of11)
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@KrispyKreme
Krispy Kreme's photos make its Twitter account look goooood. The doughnut chain is great at interacting with followers, but it also relies a little too heavily on the retweet. It seems to be capitalizing on children by tweeting out a lot of photos of cute kids, which is smart and endearing at first, until it seems a little exploitive. We'll let you decide.
(credit:Twitter/Krispy Kreme)
Arby's(06 of11)
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@Arby's
"It's #RepeatDay. A perfect day to go to Arby's & get a sandwich to go to Arby's & get a sandwich to go to Arby's & g..." reads one of Arby's recent tweets. Can we say "annoying?" Unfortunately this tweet is emblematic of Arby's greater Twitter strategy, which seems to be nothing good at all. Arby's retweets a bunch of people and is overall pretty boring and lame, with tweets like, "Happy Friday. Forget to pack your lunch." The chain also overuses bad hashtags, which is an abominable offense. (I.e. "I like roast beef and I cannot lie. #RuinARapTrack.") The one saving grace of Arby's Twitter account is its tweet from the Grammys about Pharrell's hat: "Hey @Pharrell, can we have our hat back? #GRAMMYs." That scores Arby's big points in our book.
(credit:Twitter/Arby's)
Dunkin' Donuts(07 of11)
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@DunkinDonuts
Dunkin' does a good job at making you want a donut and an iced coffee. With tweets like, "Make your friends jelly. #NationalJellyFilledDonutDay," which was accompanied by a photo, Dunkin' maximizes tweets -- promoting itself but keeping things short and sweet. It's an interactive account that quizzes followers, engages them and also advertises special offers. The only thing we're not huge fans of is Dunkin's habit of tweeting two posts together, the first marked "1 of 2:" followed by "2 of 2." Keep it simple, Dunkin'.
(credit:Twitter/Dunkin' Donuts)
Burger King(08 of11)
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@BurgerKing
Burger King definitely has a sense of humor on Twitter. The chain doesn't take itself too seriously, which is a good thing. Tweets like, "Fries > guys," and "I wish I could share my fries with you but I don't want to," have a playful, sardonic tone that's just right for a fast food company. The tweets are also short and sweet and they don't abuse the hashtag. With a good use of images and GIFs, we think the folks at Burger King know what they're doing on Twitter.
(credit:Twitter/Burger King)
Pizza Hut(09 of11)
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@PizzaHut
Pizza Hut shares some solid photos that make us hungry, and it also has fun on Twitter with visual posts like this one. Pizza Hut is good at promoting itself without hammering you over the head with it, because they keep things light. Good work, Pizza Hut.
(credit:Twitter/Pizza Hut)
McDonald's(10 of11)
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@McDonald's
McD's Twitter account is surprisingly likable. It's celebrity-heavy to be sure, but they've got a sense of humor about it (right, Joey Fatone?). They also make great use of images, where the food is actually enticing. With tweets like, "On a scale of small to large #IcedCoffee… how hectic is your Monday?" McDonald's Twitter account doesn't bother us -- it's actually pretty enjoyable. It's feel-good without being too corny (most of the time) but also has a sense of humor. We're not lovin' it, but we're definitely not disturbed by it.
(credit:Twitter/McDonald's)
Taco Bell(11 of11)
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@TacoBell
Taco Bell is killing it on Twitter. The tweets are sassy, clever and funny. With more Twitter followers than the state of Rhode Island has residents, Taco Bell is definitely doing something right. With snarky tweets like "I don't go to Taco Bell." And that's why you're single," and targeted replies like "@DrakeBell can't wait," in response to "@DrakeBell: In honor of Kim and Kanye's baby 'North West' I will be naming my first son 'Taco'," Taco Bell is not afraid to let loose and have fun on Twitter. It's refreshing. Unlike its food.
(credit:Twitter/Taco Bell)