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Douglas Explains Lolcats And Anonymous | Digital Nation | FRONTLINE | PBS
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Douglas explains Lolcats and Anonymous

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Douglas Rushkoff
Douglas Rushkoff

Lolcats: Wikipedia explains Lolcats ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lolcat ) as:

A lolcat (usually pronounced LOLL-kat, with the "lol" not being an initialism; sometimes pronounced L-O-L cat) is an image combining a photograph of a cat, with a humorous and idiosyncratic caption in (often grammatically incorrect) English--a dialect which is known as "lolspeak" or "kitty pidgin" and which parodies the poor grammar typically attributed to Internet slang. The name "lolcat" is a compound word of the acronymic abbreviation "LOL" and the word "cat".[1] A synonym for "lolcat" is cat macro, since the images are a type of image macro.[2] Lolcats are designed for photo sharing imageboards and other internet forums.

File:Cat crying (Lolcat).jpeg

Anonymous - from an FAQ on 4chan, quoted in Encyclopedia Dramatica:

"Anonymous" is the name assigned to a poster who does not enter text in to the [Name] field. Anonymous is not a single person, but rather, represents the collective whole of 4chan. He is a god amongst men. Anonymous invented the Moon, assassinated former President David Palmer, and is also harder than the hardest metal known to man: diamond. His power level is rumored to be over nine thousand. He currently resides with his auntie and uncle in a town called Bel-Air (however, he is West Philadelphia born and raised). He does not forgive.

4chan itself is a bulletin board offering posters the ability to make comments and upload files without registering, thus conferring anonymity. This has engendered the evolution of an Internet counterculture credited and blamed for various forms of collective online activities.

posted February 2, 2010

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