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and future editor Brad Kim, to develop content. This was then collated by volunteer moderators and a small editorial team. By 2010, Know Your Meme had attracted a large following and was more popular than the original web series. However, it also attracted hostility from some online communities: the
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In
January 2011, Cheese, Rountree and other employees left Know Your Meme, claiming that Baron had created an "atmosphere of paranoia and competing egos" within the company; Baron disputed this and claimed that Cheese organized a "mass exodus personal vengeance". In March 2011, Baron sold the Know
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blog, described Know Your Meme as "lucrative, self-supporting research that blends the humorous and the serious." As of March 2019, the site is maintained by seven editorial staff members (Don
Caldwell, Adam Downer, Matt Schimkowitz, Briana Milman, Sophie Dickinson and Philipp Kachalin) and one
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as the lead developer. The database includes entries for memes, trends and events, along with people and other aspects of subculture (such as films, video games, animated series and anime). Each entry has its own photo and
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Wilkinson had also been developing a personal database of internet memes. It was repurposed as a companion to the videos and launched on the current website in 2008. Due to the size of the task, Rocketboom decided to
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and dubbed themselves "meme experts". Baron noticed that each episode attracted more views than typical
Rocketboom shows. According to Cheese, memes were only starting to become popular on sites such as
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were used by advertisers who failed to acknowledge their online origins, they found that they could trace their source by using public search tools. They also found that media coverage of
180:, in turn acquired in 2016 by Literally Media. Know Your Meme includes sections for confirmed, submitted, deadpooled (rejected or incompletely documented), researching, and popular memes.
392:(NSFW). NSFW entries have warnings placed along the top of the entry and ads are usually disabled. These warnings may differ from consequences, such as bans. Know Your Meme also has a
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developer (Mike Schwab) in conjunction with a group of dedicated moderators. Former staff researchers include Chris
Menning, Amanda Brennan, Molly Horan and Ari Spool.
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at the
Library of Congress. In May 2016, the website was cited as a source for explaining the concept of "dank memes" in regards to the political campaigning in
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Know Your Meme has been praised by numerous publications. Its entries are frequently cited in both journalism and scholarly works covering internet memes.
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gallery; a video gallery was added in
November 2010. As of January 2017, the database contained more than 2,700 entries of "confirmed" memes.
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The administrators have a say on what gets confirmed and what gets "deadpooled", or rejected. Some of the meme entries are graphic and
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in the Blog-Cultural category in 2012. In June 2014, Know Your Meme was inducted into the Web
Archiving Program of
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At the end of 2008, after more than a year of growth, Rocketboom released an expanded database with
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may contain an excessive amount of intricate detail that may interest only a particular audience
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Each episode of Know Your Meme covered one meme in detail, exploring its history and context in
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when the series began, and
Rocketboom allocated more resources as their popularity grew.
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Know Your Meme was created in
December 2007 as a series of videos which were part of the
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included Know Your Meme on its list of the "50 Best
Websites 2009" for the web series.
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by Atsuko Sato, the meme's original creator, and sold on June 12, 2021, for 1696.9
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233:. They dubbed themselves the Rocketboom Entity for Internet Studies. Noticing that
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1077:"Getting serious about collecting and preserving digital culture | Folklife Today"
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248:. They were hosted variously by Colan, Cheese, Rountree and Wilkinson, who donned
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1103:"WATCH: 'Insiders' Had To Explain 'Dank Memes' To Boomers, RIP The Internet"
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in 2010 for Best Guest Star in a Web Series. It won the People's Voice
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217:. It was founded by employees Kenyatta Cheese, Elspeth Rountree and
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591:"A day in the office with Know Your Meme—the Web's "Britannica""
752:"Iconic 'Doge' meme NFT breaks record, selling for $ 4 million"
719:"'Know Your Meme' Acquired By Cheezburger in Seven-Figure Deal"
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Please help by removing excessive detail that may be against
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In April 2016, Cheezburger was acquired by Literally Media.
997:"Behind the Scenes at the Encyclopedia Britannica of Memes"
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557:"Cheezburger's new owner is Israeli digital-media company"
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532:"Literally Media Buys Cheezburger To Reach Millennials"
663:"The story of the internet, as told by Know Your Meme"
1059:"16th Annual Webby Award Winners: The Complete List"
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241:seemed uninterested in how they began and spread.
317:). The NFT sale was certified by Know Your Meme.
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164:and more. It also investigates new and changing
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136:) is a website and video series which uses
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781:. Dembot. December 6, 2012. Archived from
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364:Learn how and when to remove this message
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295:for an undisclosed seven-figure amount.
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1258:Internet properties established in 2007
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400:, and shop. Dr. Sean Rintel, who wrote
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1253:Mass media about Internet culture
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431:" of memes and internet culture.
286:2011–present: Sale to Cheezburger
16:Website and video series on memes
1024:Fisher, Adam (August 24, 2009).
994:Winkie, Luke (January 5, 2023).
878:. Seanrintel.com. Archived from
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779:"The History of Know Your Meme"
454:the Australian federal election
225:in their spare time, when host
200:(right) and Kenyatta Cheese at
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1248:American online encyclopedias
947:10.1080/24701475.2021.1968657
876:"Know Your Meme "Sean Rintel"
689:Gannes, Liz (April 6, 2009).
622:Conti, Allie (May 26, 2016).
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189:2007–2010: Web series origins
140:software to document various
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346:Knowledge's inclusion policy
265:and hire interns, including
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1057:Paul, Sonia (May 1, 2012).
691:"Intel Sponsors Rocketboom"
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456:during a discussion on the
425:described the site as "the
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1268:Works about Internet memes
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923:Pettis, Ben T. (2022).
428:Encyclopedia Britannica
422:The Wall Street Journal
1218:I Can Has Cheezburger?
402:The Automated Identity
276:Encyclopedia Dramatica
274:and the controversial
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107:; 16 years ago
105:November 25, 2007
811:on September 15, 2012
460:television programme
440:Know Your Meme won a
221:, and Rocketboom CEO
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831:"Deadpooled Entries"
278:said it was "mostly
162:Internet celebrities
57:Literally Media Ltd.
882:on October 22, 2013
805:"Confirmed Entries"
785:on October 20, 2013
293:Cheezburger Network
178:Cheezburger Network
120:Current status
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934:Internet Histories
731:on August 14, 2012
301:In June 2021, the
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223:Andrew Baron
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158:catchphrases
154:image macros
150:viral videos
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129:
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94:Registration
85:knowyourmeme
75:Don Caldwell
41:Encyclopedia
37:Type of site
18:
1203:Cracked.com
1087:October 20,
1042:October 19,
886:October 19,
859:October 19,
837:October 19,
815:October 19,
789:October 19,
757:NBCNews.com
446:Webby Award
263:crowdsource
1242:Categories
908:August 11,
724:Tubefilter
518:References
492:Kiwi Farms
231:Rocketboom
214:Rocketboom
202:ROFLCon II
174:Rocketboom
148:, such as
144:and other
112:2007-11-25
66:Rocketboom
1222:Fail Blog
1009:March 15,
955:238660211
735:March 28,
702:March 13,
674:March 13,
668:The Verge
635:March 13,
602:March 13,
409:Reception
396:section,
303:Doge meme
250:lab coats
1192:Websites
1063:Mashable
1036:Archived
567:June 13,
541:June 13,
497:Lurkmore
470:See also
463:Insiders
102:Launched
97:Optional
979:June 5,
902:"About"
763:May 12,
321:Website
184:History
110: (
49:English
974:Quartz
953:
853:"NSFW"
696:Gigaom
204:, 2010
123:Online
72:Editor
951:S2CID
394:forum
255:4chan
239:memes
166:memes
54:Owner
1146:2018
1115:2018
1089:2016
1044:2013
1031:Time
1011:2023
981:2018
910:2015
888:2013
861:2013
839:2013
817:2013
791:2013
765:2023
737:2011
704:2023
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637:2023
629:Vice
604:2023
569:2019
543:2019
434:Time
419:and
398:blog
210:vlog
138:wiki
87:.com
943:doi
458:ABC
383:GIF
315:USD
311:ETH
307:NFT
134:KYM
80:URL
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
