The internet is a very unpredictable and sometimes savage place. The people of the Internet should not be allowed to make important decisions, but these 13 hilarious examples prove that companies have not learned this lesson yet.
Boat Blunder
What could possibly go wrong when you let the internet choose a name for a $300 million research vessel? Well you could end up with a name like RRS Boaty McBoatFace. The second place name Henry Worsley who was a British explorer, but apparently that wasn't good enough.
A Whale Of A Tale
The Greenpeace organization wanted to name a group of humpback whales in an attempt to keep them safe from Japanese poachers. The finalists were Kaimana, which means "power of the ocean,", Shanti, which means "tranquility" and Mr. Splashy Pants. Guess which name won.
A Wasted Opportunity
When the city of Austin, Texas decided that Solid Waste Services Department wasn't a very attractive name, it held an online naming contest. The winning name was "The Fred Durst Society of the Humanities and Arts" named after the very trashy lead singer of the metal band, Limp Bizkit.
Dew Dilemma
When Mountain Dew came up with a new green apple flavor, they asked the internet to come up with a creative name. If you think nominations like "Diabeetus," "Fapple," and "Sierra Mist" are bad, think again. The winner was "Hitler did nothing wrong." Obviously Mountain Dew didn't go with that choice.
iFail
Kraft Vegemite is a salty, Australian dip that sounds pretty unappetizing. Kraft decided to rebrand the product to make it a little more appealing. Unfortunately the winning name from an online poll was Vegemite iSnack 2.0.
Have You Learned Nothing From Boaty McBoatface?
An elementary school in Austin, Texas originally named Robert E. Lee Elementary asked people to come up with a new name. The name nominations included Donald J. Trump Elementary, Adolf Hitler School for Friendship and Tolerance and Schoolie McSchoolface.
What’s In A Name?
Picking a baby name can be stressful. A Canadian couple wanted a second opinion so they went to namemydaughter.com for help. By the time the baby was born over 100,000 people voted for the name Cthulhu.
Nobody Crosses Chuck Norris
Austria and Slovakia built a cycling bridge to connect the two countries. Once it was complete the only thing left to do was name it. Two months and 12,599 votes later, the people decided on the name "Chuck Norris" which was rejected by the project officials.
Go Steagles!
Comedian and TV Personality Stephen Colbert has been behind quite a few naming contest fails. He has had 9 random things named after him after urging viewers to go hijack online polls, including a hockey mascot, Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle, and an airplane, Air Colbert.
The Honest Voters
BC Ferries asked the public to think of some creative names for three of their new vessels. The publis spoke their minds with nominations like Spirit of the WalletSucker, S.S. ShouldveBeenABridge and Queen of the Overpriced.
A Golden Opportunity
A Connecticut mom sold the rights to name her baby on EBay for $15,000. The lucky winner was GoldenPalace.com. The mom said she will call her daughter Goldie.
Back At It Again
Stephen Colbert and his viewers trolled an online poll to name a new wing on the international space station. However, NASA rejected the poll and decided to just name a treadmill after Colbert instead of an entire wing.
Space…The Final Frontier
William Shatner tried to use his celebrity status to name one of Pluto's moons "Vulcan," a planet from Star Trek. However the SETI Institute decided to go with Styx instead.