On February 28 2019, a Facebook user shared the image below (archived here) and commented: “So if u have astigmatism, then this is what lights look like to you. I always thought this was what they looked like for everybody”: The post was consequently shared nearly half a million times in approximately a week. Due …
If You Have Astigmatism, This Is What Lights Look Like Read More »
On March 5 2019, an unexpected rumor that Fred Rogers (the creator and star of the beloved American children’s television show Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood) was bisexual began spreading on LGBTQ news sites and social media in general. Several concurrently circulating tweets formed a basis for the rumor about Rogers’ sexuality. An especially popular stated: Anyway, wildest thing …
In early March 2019, a Facebook user shared the following indifferently-spelled meme (archived here), featuring Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and a quote in which she purportedly insisted that “white women” ought to have “more abortions.” A photograph of Ocasio-Cortez speaking (above) was captioned: “We are dying, too many people in this country. White weman need to have …
On March 3 2019, Texas politician Sid Miller shared “An important reminder!”, a meme (archived here) purportedly providing the last line in a Statue of Liberty dedication speech from October 1886: Atop a bronze Statue of Liberty, the meme’s text stated: The last line in the speech at the unveiling of the Statue of Liberty, …
‘There is Room in America and Brotherhood for All’ Statue of Liberty Dedication Speech Read More »
Actor Luke Perry died following a stroke on March 4 2019. That same day, a screenshot (archived here) suggesting Perry had received a pneumonia vaccine just before his stroke appeared and quickly began circulating: The post, captioned “In case someone was wondering!”, displayed what appeared at first glance to be an article reporting Perry was hospitalized due …
On February 22 2019, Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) shared the following meme (archived here), purporting to quote Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez on the feasibility of building walls across mountains in an apparent reference to the United States border: King captioned the post “Wrong again, AOC,” with a red “X.” It featured a photograph of Ocasio-Cortez and …
In the aftermath of the March 2019 U.S. media frenzy surrounding the Momo challenge, a number of “real Momo videos” have opportunistically surfaced and quickly racked up large share counts. We came across several of the likely many surviving “real Momo” videos on Facebook that were posted by concerned parents, although given the nature of …
A long-circulating Facebook status meme of indeterminate claims that typing #911 in a comment will generate a green line or green bar, confirming that the user commenting is “not a snitch.” Variations of the meme (which date back to March 2016) tend to operate as “engagement bait” — or, to be more precise in this …
During ongoing national debate about a new abortion law in New York in February 2019, a Facebook user shared a meme with a photograph of an infant atop an American flag, bearing the following caption: WHAT IF THE GOVERNMENT FUNDED ADOPTIONS INSTEAD OF ABORTIONS? In the midst of this debate, this uncited meme proved popular and …
‘What If the Government Funded Adoptions Instead of Abortions?’ Read More »
In February 2019, a Facebook page shared the following biographical meme about Samuel L. Jackson, detailing a purported drug addiction that defined his life before he got clean, which was around the time he appeared in Pulp Fiction. Alongside the meme, the page wrote: “Because he did not allow his situation to become his coffin.” The …
Was Samuel L. Jackson an ‘Unknown Heroin Addict’ Before ‘Pulp Fiction’? Read More »
