Satirical news site The Onion is supposed to be just that—satire. But a recent joke headline about Kyle Rittenhouse is proving to be all too true.
The Onion posted the joke headline "Kyle Rittenhouse Sentenced To 45 Years Of CPAC Appearances" the day that he was acquitted of charges in the shooting deaths of 2 people in Kenosha, Wisconsin last year.
Now it seems as though that headline was a bit prescient.
Rittenhouse has been invited to speak at America Fest, a Turning Point USA conference not unlike the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (or CPAC) referenced in the Onion headline.
Writer Thor Benson shared a screenshot of The Onion's headline next to a poster for America Fest to Twitter, with the caption:
"The Onion in November // how it's going"
The Onion in November // how it's goingpic.twitter.com/0DFzhjDIlR— Thor Benson (@Thor Benson) 1639593217
You can see the images below:
Thor Benson/Twitter
Thor Benson/Twitter
Many Twitter users commented on the increasingly blurred lines between satire and reality. You just cant make this stuff up.
I remember when the creators of Veep were interviewed last year and they were like, "we couldn't even make that show right now, it's no longer satire."— \u27a5 rie \ud83c\udde9\ud83c\uddf0\ud83d\udc3e (@\u27a5 rie \ud83c\udde9\ud83c\uddf0\ud83d\udc3e) 1639597865
Same energypic.twitter.com/c0LNb9fWt7— James (more like Lames) (@James (more like Lames)) 1639649008
These last 6 years, I swear, we've just all been sucked into one of the Onion writer's fever dreams.— Glory to the Builders (@Glory to the Builders) 1639594517
Onion stopped being satire a LOOONG time ago. Mainly due to satire, itself, being deceased, decayed, and it\u2019s sterile dust scattered upon the wind.— Paul H. (@Paul H.) 1639604217
The Onion re-inventing itself as a hard news site was one of the most interesting developments of the last 5 years.— PH Wu \u5433\u67cf\u6f22 #UnionStrong \ud83d\udcaa (@PH Wu \u5433\u67cf\u6f22 #UnionStrong \ud83d\udcaa) 1639613549
Others dragged Rittenhouse himself.
He'll do the "Let's go Brandon" and they'll think he's a genius.— Archie Bell (@Archie Bell) 1639612305
They didn\u2019t even let him buy a new tie.— TheBadNewsB (@TheBadNewsB) 1639593283
Speaker? What's it going to be about how I killed 2 people and got away with it— Basic Guy #1 (@Basic Guy #1) 1639613063
Defense attorney Mark Richards said Rittenhouse would likely leave Wisconsin, move to a new area, and fade into obscurity as the intense national media attention subsides. \u201cHe has to get on with his life the best he can. I think eventually some anonymity will come back to it."— J. Thomas Ganzer (@J. Thomas Ganzer) 1639617119
The Onion had more to say about Rittenhouse throughout his trial. Some of the more notable headlines included:
"Kyle Rittenhouse Claims Self-Defense After Shooting 3 Jurors"
"Critics Question Why Kyle Rittenhouse Singled Out In Kyle Rittenhouse Trial"
No doubt his appearance at America Fest later this month will not be Rittenhouse's last showing at a conservative conference. Maybe The Onion should stick to satirizing the news rather than literally predicting what absurd twist life is going to take next.