Eight internet memes that defined 2014

This year’s viral memes became more than in-jokes between bored teenagers and started to reflect and inspire events in the real world

Dead, naked and famous – the celebrities we searched for this year

If you’re the type of person who feels Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is due for an update to include Wi-Fi, then chances are you’ll be familiar with many of the year’s most popular memes. You will know who Jeremy Meeks, star of the hot mugshot, is. You thought Apparently Kid was adorable, and laughed at Pharrell William’s hat. You haven’t stopped saying “no its becky” to everything.

2014, however, was really the year in which internet memes transitioned, either reflecting or inspiring events IRL (in real life). No longer do image macros and hashtags exist merely as esoteric in-jokes to amuse bored teenagers and social media managers. They began to comment on the topical, and tell us something about what is happening in the offline world. Here are eight such memes from the past 12 months.

Sochi problems

The world is currently angry at Russia, and for many things. The forcible military invasion – sorry, “annexing” – of Crimea; for possibly being the source of Buk missiles which shot death into the sky to meet 283 innocent people; for the passing of laws to oppress and subjugate LGBT people.

So it’s possible to forget that Putin’s troubles kicked off way back in February, with Sochi hosting the Winter Olympics. The Games were supposed to boast to the world of Russia’s prowess. As it was, the Russian government became a global laughing stock.

Very quickly #SochiProblems went viral, as journalists and athletes and spectators were met with odd double-toilets, undrinkable water and buildings half-completed. 26,000 tweets with the #SochiProblems hashtag were sent within 24 hours.

Ellen’s selfie

Selfie was the word of 2013, but if there was anybody left on the planet who didn’t know what it meant at the beginning of 2014, that probably ended with the 86th Academy Awards in March and Ellen DeGeneres’ star-packed picture.

DeGeneres’ selfie (which technically was Bradley Cooper’s, as he took the photograph), managed to capture luminaries such as Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Lupita Nyong’o, Brad Pitt, Julia Robert, Angelina Jolie, Kevin Spacey … we could go on … and became the most popular tweet of all time.

It has had more than 3.3m retweets and around 2m favourites. Almost 800,000 of those retweets came within the first half an hour of posting. Overall, it is estimated the tweet was seen by 37 million people and inspired parodies featuring Drake, Grumpy Cat, pepperoni pizza, and of course, Doge.

Hands up, don’t shoot

The relationship between America’s law enforcement and its black and ethnic minority communities, has hit an all-time low after a number of killings of African American men by white police officers in 2014.

The catalyst for national and even global protest for change was the fatal shooting in August of the unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. Brown’s alleged last words – “hands up, don’t shoot” – became the rallying cry for justice for Brown, and for a wider movement to tackle what is viewed as insidious police prejudice.

The #HandsUpDontShoot hashtag trended on Twitter and Facebook around the world. Other hashtags used to amplify discontent and connect protesters included: #BlackLivesMatter, #RIPMikeBrown, and simply, #Ferguson. #IfTheyGunnedMeDown tackled the way in which people of colour, especially men, are represented in the media (hint: usually as thuggish and criminal).

When another unarmed black man, Eric Garner, was again killed by a white police officer, his last words – “I can’t breathe!” – also went viral.

Ice bucket challenge

There’s no denying, when it comes to online trends that transcended browser windows and Facebook posts, the ice bucket challenge is probably number one on the list.

The rules were simple: after being doused in the ice-chilled water on camera, challengers would squeal at a pitch only audible to dogs, and then nominate three other people. The nominees then had 24 hours to complete the challenge and nominate three others, or donate an unspecified sum to an (ALS), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a subtype of motor neurone disease (MND), charity.

Everyone did the ice bucket challenge: celebrities and civilians; the very old; babies; unsuspecting pets; neighbours; friends; colleagues. George Bush, Taylor Swift, Simon Cowell, Justin Bieber, Benedict Cumberbatch (twice), Bill Gates, Oprah, Tom Cruise, Ronaldo and Anna Wintour all took part. But perhaps the best was Donatella Versace’s attempt, in which she implored people to donate to “ASL” causes, flanked by two shirtless assistants.

Suárez’s bite

During the World Cup, Uruguay’s Luis Suárez bit off more than he could chew, namely the shoulder of Italian player Giorgio Chiellini. As with Suárez’s last on-field snack attack, the internet exploded with visual jokes and puns.

Though Suárez eventually tweeted an apology to Chiellini, which was accepted, he mostly maintained that he had “fallen” onto the player, teeth first.

#ISISmediablackout

It’s not been the cheeriest of years but perhaps the most depressing news to hit the internet has been the rise of Islamic State (Isis). It has been widely written about that Isis is adept at social media and technology; its heinous videos are slickly produced; its Twitter accounts get hashtags trending.

All of this made the group’s activities difficult to avoid. But the internet, and in particular the Twittersphere, fought back. People did not want lasting memories of the murdered hostages James Foley, Steven Sotloff, David Haines, Alan Henning and Peter Kassig to be knees in sand, wearing orange jumpsuits about to meet their deaths at the hands of a balaclava-clad coward. People wanted them to be remembered for the sons, fathers, journalists, humanitarians, aid workers that they were.

Qatar-based writer Hend Amry created the #Isismediablackout hashtag, which went viral on Twitter.

The mainstream media quickly took note, responding to the hashtag by making a conscious decision to stop using screengrabs from the videos to represent Isis victims, but photographs taken from social media accounts or supplied by families.

Alex from Target

One person who has definitely felt the real-life impact of the power of the meme this year is 15-year-old Alex Lee from Texas, a Target (American supermarket) employee whose every day existence changed exponentially when he became famous online for looking good as he packed groceries.

Alex’s fame kicked off when he was surreptitiously snapped at the checkout by a teen admirer and his photograph posted to Twitter. Pretty soon it was being retweeted by girls who appreciated his One Direction looks and adults who just wanted to pinch his cheeks.

A genuine overnight sensation, Alex gained over 300,000 Twitter followers in 24 hours. Cut to TV appearances on CNN and Ellen DeGeneres’ TV show, in which he came across as very likable indeed.

Alex’s fame grew and grew: he currently has 740,000 followers on Twitter, that all important blue tick, and an email account in his bio “for business”.

Mail Kimp

Serial is the podcast that turned us all into people who listen to podcasts. A spin-off from This American Life, Sarah Koenig’s exploration of a high school murder committed in 1999 has had 5 million listeners hooked.

Among the brilliant parodies, podcasts about the podcast, the backlash, the Saturday Night Live skit, and the theme tune remix, perhaps the best meme to have sprung from Serial is courtesy of its sponsorship.

The distinctive advert for mass email client MailChimp has become seared into the brains of all fans, thanks to the odd pronunciations of the company name in vox pops. “Mail-a chimp-a”, says one dude, flamboyantly. While another tentatively enquires: “Mail Kimp?” And the internet did the rest. Mail Chimp even bought the domain mailkimp.com, while AdWeek, the Guardian, Mashable and Quartz all wrote articles on its impact.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEoKyaqpSerq96wqikaJuforqmutOiqp%2BqlZp8c3yQbWadnZNkgHF7xKKeoaxdnru1sdGnnK1lnZq6pr%2BMrZ%2BarF2Zsqe1zZ6bZmpgZoE%3D