CNN's #AskACop triggers anti-police backlash

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It was a social media backfire just waiting to happen.

When CNN called on Twitter users to offer up questions for a panel of police officers on an upcoming segment called "Cops Under Fire," it instead elicited a flood of sarcasm, outrage and derision centered on recent high-profile incidents of police violence.

Thanks to the backlash, the hashtag #AskACop climbed to the top of the list of U.S. Twitter trends Tuesday night.

The network should have known what it was getting itself into. When NYPD called on New Yorkers to tweet out pictures with cops in an effort to drum up goodwill for the department this April, the campaign was overrun with pictures depicting police brutality.

SEE ALSO: NYPD Hashtag Sparks Backlash Against Police Across U.S.

The CNN Tonight panel, which airs Tuesday night, is set to consist of five officers who have used deadly force in the course of their job. The cops will field questions from social media users responding to the campaign as part of a town hall discussion.

Here are just a few of the mocking questions Twitter users aimed at the group of cops:

The campaign wasn't a total loss in terms of sparking potential dialogue. Some offered serious, hard-hitting questions, including activists who played a prominent role in the Ferguson protests:

Others defended police by tweeting their legitimate gratitude for their service:

CNN chalked the campaign up as a success all the same. Later in the evening, the network thanked respondents for boosting #AskACop to the top national trend: