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In this category we revisit where we were when the internet stood still. The way those who were alive at the time can tell you where they were when JFK was shot, so too will we be able to recall what fast food chain we were ordering from when Moo Deng first emerged onto the scene.
In week 4 of the Daily Dot’s 2024 Hall of Fame, we’re turning to “Cultural Moments.” The iconic images that broke the internet and haunt us to this day.
Last year, we touted Martin Scorsese’s beef with Marvel, West Elm Caleb, and men being creeps at the gym. This year I encourage everyone to vote for Oysters girl.
Here are the nominees for the fourth round of the Daily Dot Hall of Fame.
Kayaking During Hurricane Milton
Amid more heartbreaking natural disasters than before, we’ve begun grieving strangers on the internet.
The farmer who writes her phone number on a horse and sets it free. The stray cats. The streamers who told the internet that they were not going to leave during the hurricane because they would never abandon their dog. Lieutenant Dan, some guy who refused to abandon his boat in Tampa Bay in October amid Hurricane Milton.
But we’ll remember the story of climate change in the early 20th centuryvia the daredevils who kayaked in their living room as the storm surge flowed into their homes.
Anything for content.
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Moo Deng
In recent years the viral cats and dogs of the Obama era have passed away from old age.
Be it Grumpy Cat or Maple the YouTube dog that enjoyed their master’s country singing, their era has passed.
If an animal is to truly capture the internet’s attention with Harambe-like levels of vigor, they need personality. Certainly Moo Deng, an infant hippopotamus from Thailand, checks that box.
It’s an usual creature filmed in a safe environment being playful. And within days of it hitting our screens this year, that adorable little rascal was photoshopped on every corner of the web.
Moo Deng 2024 baby.
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48 Oysters At Fontaine’s In Atlanta
Then there was the woman who “ate half the ocean” on a controversial first date.
Unfortunately her viral story was propelled by the internet’s perpetual misogyny, yet no one can deny the captivating saga of the woman who finally agreed to go on a date with a man she did not like.
As a sort of litmus test for his patience, she helped herself to a generous serving of oysters on his presumed tab. He realized her game mid-date, and Uno-reversed the situation by ditching her.
The internet laughed at her comeuppance, sure, but is it really wrong to take a nagging simp up on his offer to treat you like a princess? No way.
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Elon Musk Giving Divorced Dad Vibes At Trump Rally
It’s funny how free-speech advocates often turn into doting fanboys for leaders who joke about locking up their political opponents.
Until 2020, tech mogul Elon Musk pretended he was above the fray and cared about free speech. It sure seemed like he was buying Twitter to attack journalists who were mean to him, yet he said he wanted to maximize free speech by allowing all sides to vent on his new platform.
And then he became a guy who helped Donald Trump, disgraced ex-president, get back on Twitter in the name of free speech… And then Musk leveraged the entire platform to support him, including literally suppressing free speech.
Musk’s fandom for Trump manifested online via AI-generated dance off between the pair. In person, at a MAGA rally, his support gave off so much cringe divorced dad energy that a new Soyjack was born.
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Is Andrew Tate Transgender?
No but a photograph of the dangerously influential men’s right activist showed him in a speedo. The unflattering photograph sparked an entire winking movement about whether or not the anti-trans figurehead was himself trans.
It was one of the Daily Dot’s most read politics stories of 2024.
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