Junlper (stylized as JUNlPER;[a][b] born November 1, 1995[5]) is a former shitposter on Twitter. She[c] is known for posting satirical screenshots of fabricated news stories[1] and is credited with popularizing the term goblin mode[6][dubious – discuss] and creating a fake headline about the "dick vein" on Snickers candy bars.[4]
Following a dispute with Twitter's owner, Elon Musk, her multiple accounts were suspended in incidents that generated backlash against Musk.[7]
Activities on Twitter
Junlper originally created her Twitter account in early 2019 in order to support the Bernie Sanders 2020 presidential campaign, but later pivoted towards mocking people she considered her political enemies.[1]
In an interview with Vox and on the Western Kabuki podcast, Junlper said that discourse surrounding the Hogwarts Legacy game was manufactured[8] and that despite saying that people should feel free to buy it, they shouldn't try to get "good ally points" for disliking J. K. Rowling.[9]
Goblin illustration by John D. Batten from "English Fairy Tales" (19th century)
In 2022, Junlper made a tweet featuring a doctored Fox News headline of an interview with actress Julia Fox, purporting her to have used the phrase goblin mode.[12][3] The image prompted a large increase in online searches for goblin mode[13], leading Fox to clarify she did not use the term.[citation needed]
In June 2022, the term was defined on Dictionary.com as "a slang term for a way of behaving that intentionally and shamelessly gives in to and indulges in base habits and activities without regard for adhering to social norms or expectations".[14] In December 2022, online respondents selected the term from Oxford Languages' shortlist, which also included metaverse and #IStandWith, as the Word of the Year.[15][13] The Oxford University Press attributed the spike in the phrase's popularity to Junlper's tweet.[16]
Snickers "dick vein"
A snickers bar with "dick vein" showing
In April 2022, Junlper satirically claimed in a viral tweet that Snickers was removing the "dick vein" design from the top of the candy bar, prompting a backlash from unwitting Snickers fans. Due to the volume of response, Snickers clarified in its own viral tweet that the "veins remain".[4][17] The tweet spawned follow-up hoaxes including a viral fake image of Tucker Carlson talking about the "dick veins" on his Fox News show, alluding to Carlson's widely mocked[18] comments about "unsexy" M&M's characters earlier that year.[19][1]
Interactions with MrBeast
In March 2023, when YouTuberMrBeast suggested his fans mess up Hershey's chocolate bar displays, Junlper said it was proof he is "demonic".[20] Later that month, she fabricated an image of a Walmart website page for a "product zoner", to which he responded, "I'm all for dunking on me, but no need to spread lies."[21]
In June 2023, when MrBeast said that he was invited on the Titan before the Titan submersible implosion, she accused him of lying, as his text was blue (meaning the text was sent, not received). He responded by saying that it was a screenshot he took of his friend's text.[22][23][24][22]
Suspension from Twitter
@JUNlPER's page on October 6, 2023.
On October 6, 2023, Junlper was suspended from Twitter. The previous day, Elon Musk made a change where headlines would not display above news articles.[25] In response, Junlper used this change in functionality to make a satirical tweet in which she claimed that "growing evidence suggested that" Musk was a pedophile. Junlper and her alt account were subsequently banned hours later. She was briefly unbanned.[26][27] Junlper briefly operated from @junegoblinmode[26] but was again suspended on October 7. Junlper then operated from @JunlperBot,[28] until it was suspended on November 13.[29]
There has been no official statement given on the reason for suspension. The move was condemned by journalists Erin Reed and Ben Collins, as well as civil rights attorney Alejandra Caraballo.[26][30] Mike Masnick of Techdirt contrasted the suspension with Musk's previous claims of being a 'free speech absolutist'.[7]
^ abcDickson, EJ (April 27, 2022). "Meet the Shitposter Who Started a Right-Wing Moral Panic About the Snickers Dick Vein". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 3, 2022. After her tweet went viral – as well as a follow-up photo of an apparently veinless Snickers bar, which she says she pulled from an old Reddit post – many on Twitter believed it to be true, to the degree that Snickers itself had to post a tweet reassuring fans that the vein wasn't going anywhere.
