Milkshake Duck
Etymology
Coined by the Australian cartoonist Ben Ward (as @pixelatedboat) in a viral 2016 tweet: "The whole internet loves Milkshake Duck, a lovely duck that drinks milkshakes! 5 seconds later We regret to inform you the duck is racist." The joke was a satire of the hype-then-scandal cycle. The invented duck became the shorthand for the pattern it lampooned.
noun · /MILK-shayk duk/
A person or thing that the internet gleefully adopts as wholesome, only to discover soon after that they have a disqualifying dark side.
What it names
The now-familiar arc of overnight beloved-to-cancelled, capturing how quickly mass adoration curdles once the internet digs into anyone it elevates.
Example
The feel-good viral hero turned out to be a milkshake duck by the end of the week.
Related idea
A milkshake duck is undone by a fatal revelation about their past; someone merely ratioed has just posted a badly received take, with no scandal required.