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January 05, 2006
Viral - Part 3 - Wassup!
In 1999 a Cuban woman and her son cross the Florida Straights in an inner tube. Tragically the mother drowned but the boy, Elian Gonzalez, managed to survive. A fisherman picked him up on Thanksgiving Day and took him to Miami. There he was taken in by relatives. His father came over from Cuba and a big fight broke out as to whether the boy should be returned to his native land. The country was divided, the press was having a field day and Janet Reno decides to send in a swat team to "rescue" the boy.
At the same time Budweiser tickled America's funny bone with a group of guys drinking beer and screaming WASSUP! at each other.
What would happen if these two media darlings collided. Well we didn't have to wait. Thanks to the quick thinking of Sean Bonner. Sean created a flash file that instantly became viral. It popped up on sites all over the internet.
This is a very effective example of something that goes viral. It was simply taking two popular subjects in modern culture and bringing them together. The humor derives from the unexpectedness of it and the fact that it is also very unsettling. Its has a "That's just wrong!" quality to it that seems to do well in a networked society.
The Associated Press, released the infamous image and after it was used by Sean Bonner in his spoof, they threatened legal action.
Posted by Dane Troup at January 5, 2006 10:40 PM