Military chiefs admit joke about whether the Taliban would like to hear Yanny, Laurel or the sound of US gunfire was in ‘poor taste’

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

The US Air Force has apologised and withdrawn a tweet that made light of killing Taliban militants in Afghanistan by invoking the viral “Laurel or Yanny” internet debate.

Laurel or Yanny explained: why do some people hear a different word? Read more

The tweet from the air force’s main Twitter account came after days of intense fighting in the Afghan city of Farah, which has served as a reminder of the perils facing US-backed Afghan forces even after 16 years of war. The US military has provided air support with A-10 attack aircraft and drones.

Its tweet said: “The Taliban forces in Farah city #Afghanistan would much rather have heard #Yanny or #Laurel than the deafening #BRRRT they got courtesy of our #A10.” The #BRRRT was meant to suggest the sound of Gatling gun fire.

A tweet from the US Air Force linking the conflict in Afghanistan with the ‘Yanny or Laurel’ internet debate. Photograph: US Air Force/Twitter

The tweet sought to link, somewhat awkwardly, the conflict to an internet debate over an audio file in which listeners can hear either the word “Laurel” or “Yanny”. The audio “illusion”, which first appeared on Reddit, seems to be saying one word – but whether that word is “Yanny” or “Laurel” is the source of furious disagreement.

The sound is an example of a “perceptually ambiguous stimulus” such as the Necker cube or the face/vase illusion, said Professor David Alais from the University of Sydney’s school of psychology.

U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) We apologize for the earlier tweet regarding the A-10. It was made in poor taste and we are addressing it internally. It has since been removed.

After questions at a Pentagon briefing about whether the tweet was appropriate, the air force deleted it and expressed regrets for the attempt at humour.

“We apologize for the earlier tweet regarding the A-10. It was made in poor taste and we are addressing it internally. It has since been removed,” it said.

Reuters contributed to this report