About
#HowToConfuseAMillennial is a hashtag that was originally created by Boomers and Generation X-ers to mock Millennials but was quickly overrun by Millennial Twitter users mocking how their ancestors are out of touch with the Millennial generation.
Origin
At 9:00 AM EST on September 4th, 2016, the Twitter account for a site specializing in hashtag games, @HashtagRoundup,[1] posted the first tweet with the hashtag #HowToConfuseaMillennial (shown below).
Spread
Initial tweets using the hashtag gently ribbed millennials with jokes about their inability to understand old technology like maps (below, left) and landline phones (below, right).
Once Millennial Twitter users caught wind of the hashtag, they used it to bash the generations before them, highlighting the economic difficulties Millennials face due to the mistakes of previous generations. These tweets were very popular, and soon became the dominant content under the “#HowToConfuseMillennials” hashtag. For example, one tweet by @TVsCarlKinsella,[2] shown below, gained over 24,000 retweets and 36,000 likes in two days.
The popularity of the hashtag made it a Twitter moment[3] and a news story on Buzzfeed,[4]BBC,[5] Mashable,[6] Uproxx,[7] and more.
Various Examples
Search Interest
Unavailable
External References
[1]Twitter – @hashtagroundup
[2]Twitter – @TVsCarlKinsella
[3]Twitter – Millennials spar with older generations in hashtag game
[4]Buzzfeed – 11 Foolproof Ways To Confuse Millennials
[5]BBC– #HowToConfuseAMillennial: The hashtag widening the generation gap
[6]Mashable – Millennials respond excellently to #HowToConfuseAMillennial hashtag
[7]Uproxx – Millennials Relentlessly Bash Their Elders With #HowToConfuseAMillennial