Viral Videos and their Impact

Portfolio Entry #5

The term “viral video” refers to an audio-visual clip uploaded to the internet which receives widespread popularity through the process of Internet sharing, typically through social media websites, such as Facebook or Twitter. A viral video often circulates around these websites immensely and gains millions of views (known as “hits”). A stereotypical viral video is often short, low-budget and filmed by the average internet-browser.

Some viral videos, however, also result in lawsuits, copyright infringement violations and/or substantial compensation pay-outs. The producers of the American animated sitcom South Park were sued in 2010 for allegedly infringing on the copyright of the YouTube viral video What What (In the Butt) by Samwell. In July 2003, Ghyslain Raza (infamously known as the Star Wars Kid due to a viral video uploaded in 2002) filed a $250,000 lawsuit against the four of his schoolmates who posted the video online without his permission. When the video went viral, Raza became a victim of cyberbullying and online harassment.

Although no one is quite sure of what the first viral video uploaded to the internet was, the above video Charlie Bit My Finger — Again! uploaded by HDCYT is considered to be one of first during the escalation of this phenomenon. Charlie Bit My Finger was uploaded to YouTube in early 2007 and currently has just under 720 million views. Other popular viral videos include Evolution of Dance uploaded by Judson Laipply with 265 million views, The Sneezing Baby Panda uploaded by jimvwmoss with 199 million views, David After Dentist uploaded by booba1234 with 125 million views, and Potter Puppet Pals: The Mysterious Ticking Noise (below) uploaded by Neil Cicierega with 152 million views.

Viral videos were also instrumental in launching the careers of many well-known celebrities today. Canadian singer-songwriter Justin Bieber was discovered by his marketing executive due to the popularity of his videos on YouTube in 2007. Bieber’s cover of Cry Me a River, originally performed by Justin Timberlake, has received almost 23 million views and is considered to be his first viral video on the internet. Similarly, the character of Fred Figglehorn (created and portrayed by actor Lucas Cruikshank) became a viral hit after being uploaded in 2006. The creation of the character spawned an internet video series called Fred and is largely known for launching the career of Cruikshank as an actor. Artists Rebecca Black, Carly Rae Jepsen, Charice Pempengco and Austin Mahone have had their careers launched indirectly through videos uploaded to YouTube which quickly became viral.

The social impact of viral videos in this day and age is enormous, with every company wanting to make their advertisements viral (e.g. Dumb Ways to Die, Evian Baby&Me) and every emerging band or artist hoping to be the next Justin Bieber or Austin Mahone.

At the end of the day, viral videos will always remain a common occurrence in the technologically advanced society of today.