Teen's Twitter Challenge Wins Him Free Nuggets for a Year

Sixteen-year-old Carter Wilkerson is a huge fan of the chicken nuggets served at the American fast food chain Wendy's. Last month, he tweeted at Wendy's official account with a question: how many retweets would it take for him to win a year's supply of free chicken nuggets?

The chain's response was less than encouraging: "18 million!" they replied. But Carter wasn't discouraged. He launched an intensive campaign to get as many people as possible to retweet his tweet and help him get closer to his coveted nuggets. "Please, everyone," he pleaded, "I need my nuggets!"

This month, Wilkerson didn't manage to hit 18 million retweets, but he broke a Twitter record: his plea for nuggets became the most retweeted tweet ever, achieving 3.6 million shares. The fast-food chain couldn't ignore this accomplishment. Although Wilkerson didn't reach the target, they announced they would give him his nuggets for free for a year—and also donate $100,000 to charity in his name. And why the generosity? After all, Wilkerson provided Wendy's with fantastic advertising—completely free. Or at least, at the cost of a year's supply of nuggets. A win-win deal for both sides.