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This week's top five trending videos: Mitt Romney is pretty fly for a white guy

Article: This week's top five trending videos: Mitt Romney is pretty fly for a white guy

Posted March 23rd, 2012, 2:03 PM by

If the Internet has taught us marketers and content producers anything, it’s that people love cute animals. With that lesson, the lead-in video for this entry on the 5 trending YouTube videos of the week features Jayden, a Shiloh Shepherd who knows how to punish herself after getting in trouble. Be sure to stick around for the number one video that has already achieved almost a million views in just a few short days.

My Debbie Downer take on the Shorties

Article: My Debbie Downer take on the Shorties

Posted March 16th, 2012, 3:03 PM by

Woody Allen has been famously unimpressed by awards shows. This past Oscar season he said, “I have no regard for that kind of ceremony. I just don’t think they know what they’re doing. When you see who wins those things — or who doesn’t win them — you can see how meaningless this Oscar thing is. … I know it sounds terrible, but winning that Oscar for ANNIE HALL didn’t mean anything to me.” And that’s how I feel about The Shorty Awards.

This week's top 5 trending videos

Article: This week's top 5 trending videos

Posted March 16th, 2012, 9:03 AM by

Here are 5 distractions to take your mind off the fact that yes, there are people who listen to Santorum’s rhetoric and think “Yup! I agree with this man and he should lead us to the promised land.”

5. BrodieSmith21, the guy famous on YouTube for uploading his trick ultimate frisbee tosses, connects with a pole vaulter on a frisbee throw (you can look a little more enthusiastic). Count Andrew Sullvian and me as two people impressed with this effort. Will you be the third? If you like this, then check out my recap last year about the “trick shot” trend on YouTube.

Is Mitt Romney a long lost member of the Bluth clan?

Article: Is Mitt Romney a long lost member of the Bluth clan?

Posted March 09th, 2012, 2:03 PM by

I’m not sure what took the Internet so long to give birth to Lucille and Mitt, an obviously brilliant image macro meme combining Lucille Bluth, the sociopathic matriarch of the Bluth family of Arrested Development, with some of Mitt Romney’s quotes during his campaign that reminds voters of his foot-in-mouth affliction and the enormity of his pocketbook.

Sad Putin vs Sad Obama

Article: Sad Putin vs Sad Obama

Posted March 06th, 2012, 3:03 PM by

I know we’ve got our own ridiculous election to follow, but did you know that Vladimir Putin is, once again, running Russia (although we are pretty sure he never really stopped). Apparently, securing only 63 percent of Sunday’s vote put a damper on his victory celebration because he had a bit of a cry. Thank goodness the Internet is here to cheer him up! The folks over at Buzzfeed alerted us to the Crying Putin meme. But, guess what? America still owns the web and President Obama isn’t about to let sad Putin steal his thunder. So…who do you think wins the sad-off?

Political deep throats

Article: Political deep throats

Posted February 28th, 2012, 9:02 AM by

For a Republican presidential candidate to be taken seriously they must go through the time honored tradition of becoming a meme via the consumption of food in a phallic manner. This means it’s time to finally pay attention to Rick Santorum (see photo above) as difficult as it may be. He now joins a rarefied group that includes Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann who were both unified into this unholy gif-union that you can’t unsee (although Mitt finds it hilarious):

This week's top 5 trending videos: Animal style

Article: This week's top 5 trending videos: Animal style

Posted February 24th, 2012, 3:02 PM by

This week’s edition is a special, animal style (not to be confused with the delicious burger from In-N-Out) edition filled with the top 5 trending YouTube videos starring some of your favorite creatures that have been getting passed around the Internets. Warning: You may experience cute overload.

5. Matt Ufford goes backstage at the Westminster Dog Show and attempts to pet each and every one of the 185 breeds represented at this annual show.

We love: Actor Jean Dujardin sleeping on people

Article: We love: Actor Jean Dujardin sleeping on people

Posted February 15th, 2012, 1:02 PM by

Keanu Reeves is not only a star in Hollywood but he is among the biggest stars if not the biggest (as far as actors go) in the world of online memes in the subcategory of image macros with his blockbuster viral meme “Sad Keanu” (which I previously discussed here) and Conspiracy Keanu. However Oscar nominee Jean Dujardin, star of THE ARTIST has come out of nowhere to try to claim the meme throne from Keanu with the “Jean Sleeping on People” Photoshop macro for which there exists a Tumblr, naturally.

This week’s top 5 trending viral videos

Article: This week’s top 5 trending viral videos

Posted February 13th, 2012, 3:02 PM by

Here are the five videos that I noticed rapidly making the rounds this week. While they may not provide any life changing enlightening moments, at least you’ll get some laughs, and if the adage that laughter is the best medicine, then that’s not so bad is it?

Has Anyone Said This Sh*t? (Yes.)

Article: Has Anyone Said This Sh*t? (Yes.)

Posted February 08th, 2012, 5:02 PM by

Not since Rebecca Black have I seen a meme go from hilarious to amusing to downright-shoot-me-annoying as quickly as the seemingly neverending “Shit [People] Say” videos. Jumpstarted seemingly centuries ago with a little celebrity juice thanks to the involvement of Juliette Lewis, the meme was birthed with this video titled “Shit Girls Say.” By now you’ve seen this and all the countless copycats. If you’ve been pulling a Rip Van Winkle who just woke up and have no idea what we’re talking about, what I’m referring to are series of viral videos which are basically a supercut of stereotypical expressions and phrase associated with different groups (not without some controversy). People quickly tired of them and vocally expressed their annoyance on Facebook or Twitter, but were quick to retweet and share any new variation that happened to fit their particular niche or interests: for example, as soon as the “Shit New Yorkers Say” video hit the web, it seemed as though every single one of my New Yorker friends posted it on Facebook (often right after having stated their irritation of these videos only the day before). For you Van Winkle’s here’s a sampling of others:

This week's top 5 trending viral videos

Article: This week's top 5 trending viral videos

Posted January 30th, 2012, 4:01 PM by

The talk and focus this week is (rightfully so) on all films that made their rounds at the Sundance Film Festival. But the Internet meme machine never sleeps (its theme song: Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop), festival or no festival, so without further ado here are the top five videos starting to trend, and as the kids say “get its swoll on” this week.

5. If you’re a violinist and you are interrupted by an audience member’s cell phone loudly ringing during your solo performance, this is how you respond in a classy manner and in other words pwn this rude cell phone owner.

Snitches of Downtown Abbey

Article: Snitches of Downtown Abbey

Posted January 25th, 2012, 2:01 PM by

I feel like King Solomon on Sunday nights lately where I have to make the difficult decision as to whether I want to watch some NFL football or the latest pop culture rage (at least in some pastoral corners of the blogosphere). It just so happens to air on PBS, something you don’t hear too often. You know it’s a sensation when the New York Times does a trend piece on it, which they did with a recent article about viewing parties being held for this show. This phenomenon is a British import called Downtown Abbey.

This week's top 5 trending viral videos

Article: This week's top 5 trending viral videos

Posted January 20th, 2012, 5:01 PM by

Sorry kids, the Shit People Say videos still aren’t going away (just this Wednesday a “Shit New Yorkers Say” appeared on the Tubes and of course was instantly shared by every New Yorker across the Twitbook), but here are five other videos trending this week that I think, nay guarantee that you will find equal to if not more entertaining.

5. One of my favorite YouTube channels belongs to someone who goes by the literal name of “LiteralMSPaint.” As the name suggests they apply their MS Paint skills to create music videos to inane pop dance songs and interprets the song lyrics literally. The MS Paint skills might be lacking but the comedy level is expert. Their latest takes on the inescapable LMFAO’s “Party Rock Anthem” and I just lost it and began LMFAO at the 1:00 mark.

Top 5 that have nothing to do with s#!* people say

Article: Top 5 that have nothing to do with s#!* people say

Posted January 13th, 2012, 4:01 PM by

Oh-em-gee, the Shit Girls Say copycat videos aren’t going away. If you’re sick of them, here are five brand-spankin’ new videos burning up the Internet and set to go “viral” this week thanks to our collective boredom and tendency to procrastinate (not me though).

5. Quadron’s cover of Lauryn Hill’s “Ex-Factor,” you know, only one of the greatest songs of our generation, is super and the reactions of my friends who I forwarded this to have been “wowwww” on one end and “why am I tearing up” on the other of the spectrum. I love the stripped down sound of their version. Also, a killer voice of Coco O. on vocals doesn’t hurt it either.

Newt Gingrich at sites of great tragedy

Article: Newt Gingrich at sites of great tragedy

Posted January 13th, 2012, 1:01 PM by

The Atlantic highlighted this odd, to say the least, photo found on Newt Gingrich’s website of the suited up presidential hopeful and his wife Callista posing in front of the gates of Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp. This might seem like a cheap shot at a presidential candidate, but regardless of the individual, there’s a weird tone-deaf vibe and lack of awareness to this photo that gives me the same discomfort I feel whenever I see tourists posing with bright smiles in front of somber sites or memorials of great loss.

Many Internet memes belong to the subgenre of image macros that includes superimposing a certain Photoshopped picture (most recent example: Pepper Spraying Cop) With the above, unfortunate photo Newt Gingrich might enter a pantheon that is even more indelible than being POTUS: A new meme.

End of the year list…list

Article: End of the year list…list

Posted December 29th, 2011, 2:12 PM by

Photo by Kent Shiraishi taken at Biei, Hokkaido, Japan.
Can you freaking believe 2011 is, for all intents and purposes, over? That means it is time for all of those end-of-year lists. So many lists, so little time left to read them; so I’ve compiled my own list of lists that will hopefully amuse, and at the very least distract, you.

For fans of MAKE and DIY culture, here are the top 10 “most important” people on Etsy, the popular online shop and community for independent handmade crafters.

For an exercise in guilty schadenfreude in 2011 here is a supercut of the best fails this year on YouTube. If you laugh at any of them you are a horrible, horrible person. I am a horrible, horrible person.

The rituals of Christmas morning on YouTube

Article: The rituals of Christmas morning on YouTube

Posted December 26th, 2011, 11:12 AM by

Well, another Christmas has come and gone: The excitement, traditions, and rituals of Christmas morning which were private and unique to each family has now become a source of public entertainment thanks to YouTube, Facebook, online communities, and the countless other vehicles for information sharing and connecting on the Interwebs. We all remember popping up on Christmas morning as a kid (at an ungodly hour in retrospect) with a rapturous and feverish glee, forcing our parents to wake up, and then euphorically opening the presents which had contained all of our hopes and dreams at the time. The difference nowadays is that this crackhead-like (if I may use that phrase here) exhilaration and joy of children on Christmas morning is now a source for millions of views on YouTube. Unless you’re a modern day Rip Van Winkle, you’ve all seen this priceless reaction video of this kid opening his Christmas present to discover a Nintendo 64 or as he screamed “a Nintendo Sixty-Foooooour. OH MY GAWD.” Yeah, that video has over 15 million views on YouTube. Bookending the Nintendo 64 kid is this classic video where a new Nintendo Wii on Christmas morning is too much to handle for the lucky boy or in this instance, utter hilarity for the adults.

Like these two videos I mentioned, each Christmas brings the rest of us a few more videos that enters our collective consciousness.

The key to viral success: Lose your expensive electronics

Article: The key to viral success: Lose your expensive electronics

Posted December 16th, 2011, 12:12 PM by

how to lose $2400 in 24 seconds from Kurtis Hough on Vimeo.

The spread and adoption of online social networks over the past few years have been accompanied by a rise of instances of vigilant members of those communities virally coming together to help one of their own, in this case recovering stolen goods (typically some form of personal consumer electronics that originates from Cupertino). Earlier this year Josh Kaufman’s Apple MacBook stolen from his Oakland apartment. With the help of a laptop tracking software that he had installed, Josh was able to remotely access his stolen computer and its built-in camera to snap photos of the thief himself. With this information in hand, he opened a Tumblr called This Guy Has My MacBook where he chronicled his attempts to recover his laptop. It received minimal attention until Josh tweeted it at which point it organically blew up where the story and his Tumblr virally spread like wildfire. The ensuing press eventually forced the city police into action and Josh was able to reunite with his MacBook.

Similarly, Massachusetts college student Mark Bao used another tracking app on his stolen MacBook Air which he used to grab and tweet this video of the thief recording himself pop and lock dancing (LOL!).

Haikus everywhere, 5-7-5 all around, you just read one here

Article: Haikus everywhere, 5-7-5 all around, you just read one here

Posted December 14th, 2011, 2:12 PM by

Over the past year or so I’ve observed haikus, that “less is more” form of Japanese poetry, making a quiet stealthy encroachment and presence upon online pop culture through a variety of means. Some of these I’ve mentioned around these SUNfiltered parts, which makes me wonder whether we’re witnessing an emergence of haikus and a comeback for the genre of poems in general back into something possibly more mainstream or at the least “meme-stream.” I had written earlier about a reader of the New York Times online edition who has gained some small measure of fame for his comments left in limerick form. The best recent example of the merging of pop culture with poetry occurred when Salman Rushdie tweeted his thoughts on the Kim Kardashian divorce in limerick form. In fact, the latest issue of New York Magazine’s Intelligencer focused on the poets or at least on the tough economic realities of that noble profession (Walt Whitman had a second job as a government clerk). If you’re not convinced of my thesis on the pop emergence of poems, but specifically haikus, I turn your attention to the following exhibits.

Gif.TV

Article: Gif.TV

Posted September 09th, 2011, 1:09 PM by

I’ve previously shared the rise of .gif animated images, which have crawled out of “the seedier corners of the Internet, in profiles of message board users and the like” and “have started to emerge as a medium of some artistic merit in their own right.” A sub-genre of .gifs have been given the fancy pants title of “cinemagraphs.” As an example, check out these 30 cinemagraphs from Kubrick films.

GIF.TV brilliantly jumps on this digital bandwagon. It’s your one-stop-shop to view .gifs within the familiar medium of a TV set. Flip the switches to find new, randomized .gifs, which are occasionally breathtaking in its artistry, but, more often than not, are simply hilarious in their repetition.

What President Obama's signature looks like

Article: What President Obama's signature looks like

Posted May 27th, 2011, 12:05 PM by

Robert “the Doodler” Alicea at DeviantArt noticed something about President Obama’s signature and brought it to life with the above sketch. His signature is an adorable pup T-Rex playing with a ball of yarn. Once you see it, you can’t unsee it. [Via]

The "trick shot" video trend

Article: The "trick shot" video trend

Posted May 20th, 2011, 1:05 PM by

In 2011 so far there’s been a trend of “trick shot” videos recorded by various college and professional athletes from all sports and uploaded to YouTube where The Internet collectively goes “ooh,” “ahh,” and “holy sh*t!” at their leet skills. My favorite so far is the one above by Brodie Smith that demonstrates he can…

Artsy animated GIF images

Article: Artsy animated GIF images

Posted May 04th, 2011, 12:05 PM by

GIF images have historically resided in the seedier corners of the Internet, in profiles of message board users and the like, but these looping animated images have started to emerge as a medium of some artistic merit in their own right. New York City photographer Jamie Beck and designer Kevin Burg have gained some viral…

Can you do nothing for 2 minutes?

Article: Can you do nothing for 2 minutes?

Posted April 05th, 2011, 5:04 PM by

Do Nothing for 2 Minutes is a website challenges you to do nothing-at least nothing on your computer-for two (excruciating) minutes. The site creator Alex Tew explains: I had been thinking how we spend every waking minute of the day with access to an unlimited supply of information, to the point of information overload. i…