Turning A Big Dial That Says "Racism" On It — Price Is Right big wheel set with the original dril tweet overlay about turning a dial that says Racism

Turning A Big Dial That Says "Racism" On It

2017copypastaclassic

Published November 3, 2026

On March 15, 2017, Twitter poster @dril wrote a now-canonical tweet about turning a big dial labeled "Racism" while glancing back for audience approval, deliberately misspelling "that" as "taht". The line grew into a plug-and-play template for calling out companies and institutions that lean into unpopular behavior while fishing for applause. By 2019, posters were aiming it at Atlus over trans-related game content and at Nickelodeon's nostalgia posting.

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Overview

Dril's post works by swapping "Racism" for any practice that is widely disliked in theory but tolerated or rewarded in moderation, with the Price Is Right stage image doing the comedic lifting1. A typical reuse writes something like "[Company] turning a big dial that says '[bad thing]' on it and constantly looking back at the audience for approval," often with the original "taht" typo preserved as a signature of the source post6. The typo is part of the bit, so cleaning it up reads as missing the joke.

Targets range from game publishers to news headlines to tech CEOs, and the humor lands when the subject's behavior fits the knob-turning motion of someone chasing cheers while doing something cheap4. Posts also work as text-only quote tweets, which is how most of the viral reuses appeared5.

Origin & Background

Platform
Twitter
Creator
@dril
Date
2017

The source post went up on March 15, 2017, when @dril tweeted, "turning a big dial taht says 'Racism' on it and constantly looking back at the audience for approval like a contestant on the price is right"1. The tweet, typo and all, grew to more than 13,000 retweets and 39,000 likes across the next seven years6.

Dril, the pseudonymous Twitter poster behind the account, had an existing archive of surreal one-liners that gave this post an instant foothold with readers familiar with his style.

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How It Spread

The first notable reuse arrived on February 16, 2019, when @Yuri_Librarian aimed the format at Atlus over what they called transphobia in the publisher's games, reaching more than 260 retweets and 840 likes2. Later that year, on October 5, @HypraSeaPea pointed the line at two Nickelodeon accounts posting nostalgia bait, gathering over 100 retweets and 620 likes3.

Reuse carried through to 2023 across Twitter's rename to X. On July 1, 2023, @Jewthulhu quote-tweeted Elon Musk about his changes to the site using the dial format, gathering more than 30 retweets and 110 likes4. On August 13, @JoePostingg aimed it at a headline reporting American belief in creationism, reaching 360 retweets and 6,900 likes5. These 2023 reuses show the template still working six years in, with the "taht" misspelling intact across the platform's X era6.

Timeline

2017-03-15

@dril posts the original tweet about turning a big dial labeled "Racism" while glancing back for audience approval[1].

2019-02-16

@Yuri_Librarian deploys the format against Atlus over trans-related game content, reaching over 260 retweets[2].

2019-10-05

@HypraSeaPea aims the line at Nickelodeon accounts posting nostalgia bait[3].

2023-07-01

@Jewthulhu quote-tweets Elon Musk about Twitter changes using the dial format[4].

2023-08-13

@JoePostingg applies the format to a headline about American belief in creationism, reaching 6,900 likes[5].

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How to Use This Meme

Users typically open with the subject's name and swap "Racism" for whatever unpopular practice fits the moment, keeping the Price Is Right image of looking back for applause1. Many preserve the original "taht" misspelling as a signature of the Dril source6.

Frequently Asked Questions