rolling viral stars/meme thread 2011

this is the thread for 2011's most famous/bloggable viral stars & memes

so, congratulations to the homeless dude w/ the golden voice! 2011's first viral star!!

& it only took us 5 days! way to go internet

is he the earliest peaking viral sensation of the viral era?

ftr

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTysXITBCmk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHYO3qdFnhg

not even 25k views? i'm not buyin it

figured it would be a boon to ilx for us to argue about the worthiness of memes all year instead of for just one week at the end of the year

Preferred the old Dawkins definition of the term tbh

Useful lightning conductor for lengthy discussions of whether or not something is racist as well.

this hipster mermaid shit has got to stop

http://s-ak.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/terminal01/2011/2/8/14/enhanced-buzz-9714-1297193066-33.jpg

just discovered this

feel it should be referred to 'hipster as pejor'

feel like whiney should be allowed to post in this thread, just this one, so he can give it the proper drubbing it deserves

pretty sure he'll be drubbing all over her sasha grey glasses in 51 heaven

i lol'd at a few hipster mermaid joints -- where is the meme even popular? i've only seen it from ilxors posting on fbook

it's blowin up on tumblr

can someone explain to me the genesis of the humblebrag thing

did it just start as a twitter account or is it from nbc thursday night comedy that i don't watch?

Just a Twitter account

But it is run by someone with a lot of comedy friends. Probably Joe Mande if I'm guessing.

yeah i was gonna say that it seemed very big very quickly

i think it's someone bigger (and more creative) than joe mande

(NOTE: Humble brags are different from brags. Do not send brags.)

I read a few idgi is the internet passing me by

Ted Williams: A golden voice the media fell in love with
The media found the feel-good story of the homeless man irresistible, but did they go overboard in trying to tell his tale?

February 24, 2011|By Joe Flint, Los Angeles Times
In mid-October, a homeless man was standing at the intersection of Hudson Street and Interstate 71 in Columbus, Ohio. A sign around his neck proclaimed that he had a "gift of voice" and had "fallen on hard times."

The man was spotted by a videographer for the Columbus Dispatch who conducted a couple of brief interviews, gave him a few bucks, and finally posted the video on the newspaper's website on Jan. 3. In less than two days, the homeless man, Ted Williams, was lifted from panhandling obscurity to YouTube sensation thanks to a 97-second clip that showcased his astonishingly resonant voice.

And within just days after that, Williams became a post-holiday, feel-good tale of redemption as the 53-year-old man made the rounds on the networks' early morning shows and, later, on daytime programs like "Dr. Phil." Well wishes and job offers tumbled in as organizations and companies lined up to extend a hand to the golden-voiced homeless man.

But, less than two months later, Williams' flash of national celebrity has dimmed. The relentless news cycle has largely moved on from Williams, but not before revealing a criminal record that included theft and forgery, drug and alcohol addictions, and his failure to care for nine children. Today, he is living in a halfway house in Los Angeles and said he is shopping a reality series.

"We like the idea that someone who threw it all away is now finding redemption," said Aaron Brown, a former anchor at CNN who is now a professor of journalism at Arizona State University. "The fact that he did nothing to earn it and probably cannot stand the pressure of it is totally irrelevant to the people telling the story … that is a different story."

The explosion of attention that once engulfed him has left even Williams trying to understand why he was singled out for instant acclaim. "I have no idea," said Williams in a recent interview at a West Hollywood malt shop where he was promoting a new, original milkshake, a mix of Oreo cookies, bananas, strawberries, vanilla ice cream and whipped cream. "I was just a homeless person who had a beautiful voice I guess."

congrats, rebecca black!

This girl's about to take the heat off Rebecca Black

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lg3tIERI-D4

yeah, about that...

http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/blog/off_the_press/2011/03/viral_youtube_video_called_repugnant_by_ucla_administration

Viral YouTube video called "repugnant" by UCLA administration
By FARZAD MASHHOOD
Published March 13, 2011 in News: Off The Press
Updated: 1 hour ago
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News: Off The Press

A university spokesman called a viral YouTube video, titled “Asians in the Library,” “repugnant.”

The nearly 3-minute video shows a woman who claims to be a UCLA student making disparaging comments about Asian students.

The university has to yet to determine whether the woman in the video is a UCLA student, said university spokesman Phil Hampton. He added that the university is also looking into how the original video was posted.

“The comments on there are contrary to the values the university believes in,” Hampton said.

The original video was posted Sunday afternoon and has since been removed. Various copies have appeared on YouTube and other websites. Postings of the video say the speaker is a UCLA student named Alexandra Wallace. A number in the university directory listed under Alexandra Wallace was disconnected as of Sunday night.

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Look you guys, she's a model!

http://www.modelmayhem.com/portfolio/871307/viewall

REMIX

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZ3dFd_h_A0

Sometimes I hate youtube.

What is all this shit about Jackie Chan?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHy7DGLTt8g

last year though?

♫pan, pa papapapan pan♫ not hearing u