A unicorn at Fox

 Every now and then, you run across a unicorn in the Fox data, as in this example from April 2024. Nothing unusual, of course, about a "social media disturbed" headline; what makes this one stand out is the target. Just as a refresher, here's a template for the "Social Media Explodes" genre:

1) Kamala Harris utters complete sentence with embedded relative clause, perhaps repeating a determiner phrase for emphasis
2) @RNCResearch (or @LibsOfTikTok) posts clip to Twitter, with comment about "word salad"
3) Intrepid Fox reporter pastes in quote-tweets by six or seven Usual Suspects from its stable of right-wing influencers and commentators (only a very small proportion of them -- let's be fair -- known to be on the Kremlin payroll)
4) "Fox News reached out to Harris' office for comment"

So even in spring 2024, having Kristi Noem on the receiving end is, let's say, anomalous. Here's how it plays out:

Noem’s post received nearly six million views in only a day, and courted a wave of horrified reactions on the social media platform, even from among her conservative fans.

Perplexed at why she shared the story, independent journalist Tim Pool* asked, "did she just intentionally end her career?"

Conservative influencer duo The Hodge Twins remarked, "Telling everybody you shot your young dog and promoting your book at the same time? wtf, this is wild."

Popular pro-Trump account "Catturd" seemed to take the story personally ...

New York Post columnist Miranda Devine commented, "No. Not normal. Shameful."

"Florida’s Voice News" CEO Brendon Leslie let Noem have it ...

Independent reporter "Publius"** made a pun out of the anecdote ...

When asked by Fox News Digital, Noem's staff had nothing to add beyond Noem's initial response to The Guardian's post.

No signs yet that social media has exploded over "South Park," but Secretary Noem is back in Fox's good graces nonetheless.

* Speaking of payrolls ...
** Using the handle @OcrazioCornPop, if you've been wondering how some themes keep surfacing long after the, erm, fact.