Internet Memes and Their Dark Side: From 4chan to Alt-Right

The article explores the evolution of internet memes from harmless jokes to tools of political extremism and online harassment. It traces the concept back to Richard Dawkins' 1976 book 'The Selfish Gene', where he coined 'meme' as a cultural replicator. The piece details how memes became central to web 2.0 communication, enabling anonymity and depersonalization. It highlights the role of 4chan, created by Christopher Poole in 2003, as a 'meme factory' fostering radical anonymity and misogyny. Key cases include the harassment of blogger Kathy Sierra with death and rape threats, and the Gamergate campaign against Anita Sarkeesian, which involved doxxing, DDoS attacks, and a game titled 'Beat Up Anita Sarkeesian'. The article examines Pepe the Frog, created by Matt Furie in 2005, which was co-opted by the alt-right and tweeted by Donald Trump in 2015, leading to its designation as a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League. It discusses the concept of 'normification' and the hypermimetic logic of political memes, which blend attention economy, social participation, and pop culture. The piece concludes with real-world consequences, including the suicide of Tiziana Cantone after viral parodies, and a 2014 4chan post where a user shared photos of a murdered woman. The essay was written for the Critical Writing II course at NABA, academic year 2019/2020.