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Viral
Want an easy way to freak me out via Gtalk? Send me an unsolicited link without explanation. Thanks to the days of ICQ and AIM, I will assume it is a Trojan and message you back, “Do you have a virus?”
But if you don’t respond, curiosity will overcome me and I will Google the link to see what other people are writing. If it doesn’t seem like a virus, I might even visit it.
That’s what happened this morning when the boy sent me a link to Michael J. Fox News. I am inclined to believe that his computer is not infected, but I am equally inclined to believe he’s sent me something tasteless and borderline derogatory. Which is exactly what he did.
Michael J. Fox News went viral this morning, and it’s awful—and possibly brilliant.
Once you’ve picked your jaw off the floor, you can make a donation to Team Fox here. They are not behind the linked site.
The real creators behind Michael J. Fox News is Webdemic. They are raising funds independent of the Michael J. Fox Foundation. They hope to raise $15,000 for the organization. I am reserving judgment until Team Fox releases a statement.
It raises a few questions. If the site continues to spread, will we start to see more sites like this? Ugly and offensive, but people will talk about them. Would it have made a difference if Team Fox was behind or supported the site?
So far, Webdemic has raised just under $300, despite the number of hits. Perhaps the low amount of donations is testament to the flaws in their strategy? People are talking, but they aren't taking action.
I think there are lots of ways to create something that people will want to share--look at Volkswagon's Darth Vader commercial. But I have no doubt that there will be imitators in the coming months, hoping for easy infamy and traffic stats, and that worries me.
12:31 PM
On the bright side, it gave you an excuse to update your blog twice in three days!