Twitter logo replaced with ‘Doge’ meme amid Musk lawsuit
Posted April 3, 2023 2:48 pm.
Those logging onto Twitter Monday may notice something different about the site as the traditional blue bird logo has been replaced.
The Shiba Inu dog at the centre of the “Doge” meme — which is also the logo for the cryptocurrency, Dogecoin — now takes up the space in the upper-left-hand corner of web browsers where Twitter’s iconic logo is normally found.
The “Doge” meme appears to have replaced the Twitter logo, just days after it was revealed that the social media company’s owner, Elon Musk, is facing a lawsuit from Dogecoin. (Screenshot via Twitter)
This comes a day after Reuters first reported that Twitter’s owner, Elon Musk, is seeking to have a lawsuit against him by the crypto company dismissed. The Tesla CEO is being sued for allegedly inflating Dogecoin’s price intentionally by more than 36,000 per cent over two years through a series of tweets, then letting it crash.
Musk himself tweeted about the logo change on Monday, posting a meme on the subject; however, he did not provide an explanation.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 3, 2023
The Dogecoin Twitter account also posted about the site’s new logo, first posting background information on the origin of the meme, and a couple more in response to Musk’s.
The dog behind the #Doge meme and #Dogecoin cryptocurrency is named Kabosu and she still lives with her owner Atsuko Sato @kabosumama in Sakura, Japan. Kabosu was a rescue dog and became a meme after Atsuko uploaded photos of Kabosu, including the one below, on her blog in 2010. pic.twitter.com/x5Kliw2DVf
— Dogecoin (@dogecoin) April 3, 2023
— Dogecoin (@dogecoin) April 3, 2023
https://t.co/VraaVN7HN4 https://t.co/5BzIuGNij4
— Dogecoin (@dogecoin) April 3, 2023
The timing of the logo swap has led some online to come up with theories to explain it.
One user suggested that the move was made to draw attention away from Musk’s racketeering lawsuit, saying, “Why do I get the feeling the Doge icon was added so when you search ‘Elon’ and ‘Doge’ the story of his racketeering lawsuit will be buried?”
Why do I get the feeling the Doge icon was added so when you search "Elon" and "Doge" the story of his racketeering lawsuit will be buried? pic.twitter.com/elDXz8vEDV
— Jesse McLaren (@McJesse) April 3, 2023
Others speculate that the move was made as part of a late April Fools Day joke: “Doge for some reason is showing up on Twitter and I can only assume this was supposed to be an April Fools joke that took 3 days to roll out,” another user wrote.
https://twitter.com/Win98Tech/status/1642944854991699968
Some brands have even joined the conversation, with Axe body spray posting a meme with the dog.
to the moon #doge pic.twitter.com/S8g6eKrJDl
— AXE (@AXE) April 3, 2023
Since the logo change was made, Dogecoin’s price rose 30 per cent in just over an hour, according to Bloomberg.
