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The 15 most iconic moments in Twitter’s 15 years

Michael Dinich
July 14, 2021
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The world’s first tweet, sent on March 21 2006, wasn’t especially profound: co-founder Jack Dorsey simply typed “just setting up my twttr.” Fifteen years later, those words were put up for auction as an NFT (non-fungible token) and sold for $2.6 million. In celebration of the platform’s 15th anniversary, we’ve identified — in no particular order — the 15 most iconic tweets.

1. #MeToo

In 2017, Alyssa Milano reintroduced the phrase “Me too,” which was first coined in 2006 by Tarana Burke, an advocate for women. Milano encouraged women and men to share their stories to protest against sexual harassment. When the hashtag began trending, more people felt comfortable coming out and sharing, which brought to light some of Hollywood’s darkest moments.

If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet. pic.twitter.com/k2oeCiUf9n

— Alyssa Milano (@Alyssa_Milano) October 15, 2017

2. Clinton snaps back at Trump

In 2016, Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump were both going after the U.S. presidency. A feud emerged during their campaigns, which spilled into Twitter. Fed up with Trump, Clinton sent a message to Trump with a simple suggestion, “Delete your account.”


3. Bill & Melinda Gates announce their divorce

Bill and Melinda, globally known for their philanthropy, shocked the world when they announced their divorce after 27 years. The foundation work, however, would continue.


4. #BLM

In 2013, Black Lives Matter’s social movement began by protesting against police brutality and racially motivated violence towards Black people. People on Twitter used this hashtag as a form of solidarity, united by social media.

5. Ellen’s Oscar selfie

According to NPR.org, Ellen Degeneres’s Oscar selfie tweet temporarily “broke” Twitter for about 20 minutes after it was retweeted over 782,000 times. But, of course, when numerous celebrities are gathered together in one picture with Degeneres at the helm, it’s bound to go viral.

6. Obama tweets his election

In the age of evolving technology, President Obama was known for having a Blackberry. So, it is only natural that he also tweeted his presidential election with, “We just made history. All of this happened because you gave your time, talent, and passion. All of this happened because of you. Thanks.”


7. #BettyWhite

When this Golden Girls actress’s name started trending on Twitter, many people jumped to the conclusion that she passed away. Soon tweets about remembering her began to follow. Finally, however, the hashtag started to honor her birthday (and not her death).

8. BTS dancing to Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy”

Die-hard fans of BTS, the international K-pop sensation, had retweeted one of the BTS members dancing to Billie Eilish’s song “Bad Guy,” which solidified the tweet as one of the most retweeted ever.

9. #TheDress

Who knew half the planet was colorblind? This hashtag caused a viral debate about a dress’ actual colors: “white and gold or blue and black?” Over 10 million tweets mentioned this hashtag, garnering attention from notable celebrities including Kim Kardashian.


10. Stan Lee passes away

It was a sad day when the comic-book creator — and godfather of the Marvel universe — passed away at the age of 95. It seemed like everyone who worked with him paused to pay respect on Twitter that day.


11. Trying to score a year’s worth of Wendy’s Nuggets 

Receiving a year’s worth of Wendy’s nuggets may not be everyone’s dream. But Carter Wilkerson was determined to make that dream a reality. In pursuit of free food, his tweet received over 3.1 million retweets! (And he got the nuggs.)


12. John McCain promises not to tax tanning beds

“American politician John McCain and the Jersey Shore’s Snookie.” Did you ever think you would hear those two names in the same sentence? In response to taxing tanning beds, McCain promised Snookie that he wouldn’t make a “situation” out of it.

13. Kevin Durant plays flag football

Amidst an NBA lockout in 2011, Kevin Durant, at the time, the Oklahoma City Thunder small forward, was bored at home. With no one to play board games with, Durant decided to ask Twitter if anyone was playing flag football. In response, a group of college guys picked him, made him a jersey, and KD threw a touchdown that night.

14: Japanese billionaire gives away his money

Giveaways are a great way to gain publicity and gain followers on social media. Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese billionaire, offered to share 100m yen ($925,000) with 100 randomly selected people who shared the tweet. Although it’s not in English, it ranks among the top tweets ever retweeted (yes, more than the nuggs guy).


15. The First Tweet Ever

Last but not least is the tweet that launched a whole new form of communication. Happy anniversary, Mr. Dorsey!


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