Difference between revisions of "4chan"

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'''4chan''' is an internet image board that was founded by [[Wikipedia:Christopher Poole|Christopher "moot" Poole]] on October 1, 2003.  Anyone is allowed to post and share images and comments. There are many different boards relating to different topics like Health and Fitness, Food and Cooking, Video Games, Technology, etc.  Its community is best known for fostering internet subcultures, creating internet memes, and organizing [[Human Flesh Search|human flesh searches]].
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'''4chan''' is an internet image board that was founded by [[Wikipedia:Christopher Poole|Christopher "moot" Poole]] on October 1, 2003.  Anyone is allowed to post and share images and comments. There are many different boards relating to different topics like Health and Fitness, Food and Cooking, Video Games, Technology, etc.  Its community is best known for fostering internet subcultures, creating [[internet meme]]s, and organizing [[Human Flesh Search|human flesh searches]].
 
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[[File:4chan.jpg|300px|thumb|right|4chan's 4 leaves logo. This logo is derived from Yotsuba Koiwai, 4chan's official mascot. Yotsuba is a female character from Japanese comedy manga  
 
[[File:4chan.jpg|300px|thumb|right|4chan's 4 leaves logo. This logo is derived from Yotsuba Koiwai, 4chan's official mascot. Yotsuba is a female character from Japanese comedy manga  
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==See Also==
 
==See Also==
 
*[[Human Flesh Search]]
 
*[[Human Flesh Search]]
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*[[Internet meme]]
  
 
==References==
 
==References==

Revision as of 09:10, 18 December 2011

(back to index)

4chan is an internet image board that was founded by Christopher "moot" Poole on October 1, 2003. Anyone is allowed to post and share images and comments. There are many different boards relating to different topics like Health and Fitness, Food and Cooking, Video Games, Technology, etc. Its community is best known for fostering internet subcultures, creating internet memes, and organizing human flesh searches. (Back to index)

4chan's 4 leaves logo. This logo is derived from Yotsuba Koiwai, 4chan's official mascot. Yotsuba is a female character from Japanese comedy manga Yotsuba&!. The logo is based on her distinctive 4 green pigtails. 4chan is also known as "Yotsuba channel" in Japanese.

Background

4chan launched on October 1, 2003 as a place to post pictures of and discuss anime and manga; an English-language version of the popular Japanese website 2chan. Contributors do not have to be identifiable, and have the notorious ability to post anonymously. The format for this online community is a series of image boards where users can post text with an attached image. Although there are many sub-categories of image boards, the random board called "/b/" is 4chan's most popular and notorious board due to its low regard for rules, and creation of popular internet memes such as rickrolling, pedobear, and lolcats.

4chan's founder Christopher Poole, aka "moot." He was voted the world's most influential person of 2008 in Time magazine's annual Time 100 online poll.

"Anonymous"

4chan's boards thrive on the ability for users to post anonymously. The term "anonymous" or "anon" is a widely used self descriptive term and username on 4chan due to a perceived sense of community created by sharing an identity. Although membership of anonymous originated in the imageboard 4chan, Anonymous has spread into the realm of the real world, collaborating on many events such as picketing and hacking important government databases. A study examined and discovered that 90% of all posts on the board were from anonymous users.

There are, however, methods in place that grant a user temporary identity on the site. See also Shortcuts.

Anon3.jpg

A reoccurring message regarding anonymity on /b/ reads: "You have just entered the very heart, soul and life force of the Internet. This is a place beyond sanity; wild and untamed. There is nothing new here. 'New' content on 4chan is not found; it is created from old material. Every interesting, offensive, shocking or debate-inspiring topic you've seen elsewhere has been posted here, ad infinitum. We are the reason for "not safe for work". We are the Anonymous Army. Cross us and you will fail. Anonymous is everywhere. You depend on us every day. We bag your groceries, we fix your computers. Anonymous sees you before you see him. Sitting at desks around the world right now is a nameless, faceless, unforgiving mafia composed of the best of the best, the worst of the worst and most people in between. We are 4channers. The people devoid of any type of soul or conscience; we are products of cynicism and apathy, and we spread those very sentiments daily. Anonymous is the hardened war veteran of the Internet. He does not forgive, nor forget. We have seen things that defy explanations. We have heard stories that would make any God-fearing, law-abiding citizen empty their stomach where they stand. We have experienced them multiple times and eagerly await their return. 4chan is a place of sheer genius and utter stupidity, and there is often a thin line dividing the two." -Anonymous, 10/28.

4chan activities

4chan users have been the source of numerous controversial internet attacks as well as real world attacks, as well as the occasional "do-good" intervention. They are known for pulling off some of the highest profile collective actions and attacks on since the history of the internet. One of the first attacks, which are done strictly for "the lulz", was a mass log-on to the social networking site "Habbo Hotel" and the organization of a mass blockade of swimming pools in the game, spamming the chat with internet sayings, and forming into the shape of swastikas.

Hal Turner

  • Between December 2006 and January 2007, 4chan collectively attacked Hal Turner's website and prank called his radio show. This caused Hal Turner's website to go down and created thousands of dollars worth of damage.

Project Chanology

  • In 2008, a church of Scientology video that featured Tom Cruise was leaked onto Youtube. The church ordered that the video be removed on the basis of copyright infringement. This action raised the ire of anonymous. One member created a video that was a call to action for members of anonymous to protest outside the church of Scientology locations around the world. Members began protesting many of the practices of the church of Scientology, such as the fact that members of the church were required to pay large sums of money to climb the ranks of the church. Protesters began wearing Guy Fawkes masks to protect their identity due to the church's history of harassing people that spoke out against it. At its peak, there were protests in most large cities in many countries across the globe.

Sarah Palin email hacking

  • In 2008, Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin was the target of an attack by 4chan user David Kernell, son of Democratic Tennessee State Representative Mike Kernell. Kernell gained access to Palin's private Yahoo Mail account by enabling password recovery, and answered her security questions using Wikipedia and a little research. [1] He then proceeded to read her email hoping to find something incriminating that could derail her campaign. Once Kernell realized there were no emails of the sort, he started a thread on 4chan's /b/ board where he eventually posted the account's password. David Kernell was sentenced to 1 year and 1 day in custody and 3 additional years of probation for his crimes. [2]

Steve Jobs' heart attack

  • In October of 2008, a hoax story was submitted to iReport.com claimed that the CEO of Apple Inc (Steve Jobs) had suffered a heart attack resulting in a significant drop in stock price of Apple Inc.

Justin Bieber

The phrase "justin bieber syphilis" reached the coveted #1 spot on Google Trends in only a few hours. This is caused many fans and bloggers to question and talk about the rumor, thus further spreading it.
  • Justin Bieber has been a target of several attacks by 4chan's /b/ board. Many of the attacks are hoax stories about Bieber's death.[3] More recently, /b/ started the rumor that Justin contracted syphilis after he was photographed with Kim Kardashian [4] This rumor was spread simply though searching the phrase "justin bieber syphilis" on Google to push it up to the top of Google Trends. It was further spread through the use of youtube videos, Twitter and blogs. The search phrase made it to #1 on Google trends and remained there until 2:00 am. [3]

TIME 100 Poll Hacking

A screenshot of the 3rd annual Time 100 online poll for the "2009 World's Most Influential People" award. If read vertically with the first letters of each name a message is revealed: "mARBLECAKE ALSO THE GAME".
  • In 2009, moot was the winner of TIME magazine's 3rd annual TIME 100 online poll. He won with 16,794,368 votes and an average influence rating of 90 (out of a possible 100). TIME noted that everyone who moot beat actually held a job to emphasize the magnitude of this victory. [5] While TIME technical staff detected some hacking attempts and tried to extinguish them, they were unsuccessful. Not only did moot win with an abnormally high influence rating (runner-up Anwar Ibrahim only had 47 out of 100), the hackers manipulated the winners so the first 21 names spelled out "marblecake also the game." Marblecake refers to Anonymous's IRC channel, and The Game is a popular meme.

William Lashua's Birthday

  • A user on /b/ posted a picture of a poster on September 1, 2010 that read "Wanted: People for Birthday Party," advertising for the 90th birthday party of William Lashua. The poster included the time and location of the party, along with an image of Lashua. For some reason, /b/tards found their hearts softened by the man and his plea, and decided to "throw him the best birthday party ever." [6] The situation is often used by /b/ to claim that Anonymous does not always do harm; in fact, they sometimes do good.

/b/ - Random

The most popular board on the site, /b/, is what people are most commonly referring to when they speak about 4chan. The board can be depicted as the garbage dump of the internet or as Mattahias Schwartz of the The New York Times put it, “the inside of a high-school bathroom stall, or an obscene telephone party line.” It is, essentially, used for misdoing.[7]

A proclamation by a frequent user of /b/ in the 4chan image boards defining /b/. This definition has been held to much scrutiny within 4chan while also being held in high regard by both outsiders and insiders alike.

This is also the board where a large portion of internet memes originate. Memes are images, videos, etc. that are passed electronically from one Internet user to another.

Common Terms and Shortcuts

Common Terms

/b/
The "random" board on 4chan. It is the site's most popular board.
/b/tard
A person who participates on /b/.
banhammer
A term used to describe when a moderator bans a user for violating one of the rules; occasionally, a user is banned simply "for the lulz." Bans can be temporary or permanent.
bump (verb)
To post in a thread, so that it is floated to the top of the board.
CP
Short for child pornography.
deliver
To provide material or content that one promised to provide.
femanon
Hypothetical female anonymous user.
get (noun)
A term used to describe the achievement of a user creating a post with a notable post number. For example, many users compete for gets such as the 300,000,000th, as the post which achieves a notable get will be remembered and referred to.
lulz
A bastardization of the internet acronym “lol,” meaning to laugh out loud.
lurker
A person who reads threads, but does not contribute to them.
meme
A concept or idea that spreads through the Internet
mfw
Short for "my face when" - usually an image is included of a person's expression, illustrating the user's reaction to a post or image.
moralfag
A person who goes against the norms of 4chan and tries to prevent harm to others.
newfag
A person who is new to 4chan and unaccustomed to its culture and behaviors.
oldfag
A veteran of 4chan who knows about old memes, customs, and threads.
OP
Short for Original Poster; the person who starts a thread.
rolling
The verb used to describe when a user posts to try to achieve a specific post number or a post number ending in a specific number. For example, the OP of a thread might promise to deliver some content if a user rolls and achieves a post ending in "111."
sage
A term included in the email box of a post, so that the post does not bump the thread.
sauce (noun)
A term that is used to request more or the origin of some content.
sticky
A post that is specifically designated by a moderator to by "glued" to the top of a board, guaranteeing that it will be the top post whenever a user views the page. A stickied page will have a tack icon next to the post, and are typically warnings to users of the board. For example, moderators will often sticky a post where a user broke a rule and was subsequently banned.
tripfag
A term used to describe a user who is using a tripcode. See also: Shortcuts.
troll
A person who deliberately acts naive in order to incite others.
whiteknight
A user who comes to the defense of others, usually "damsels in distress."

Shortcuts

noko
A user can insert the string "noko" into the email field of a post, and after the post is submitted, the user will automatically be redirected back to the URL of the thread.
[spoiler]
A user can put the tags "[spoiler] <insert text here> [/spoiler]" around something that they wish to conceal unless the text is moused over (not all boards support this).
quotes
A user can use a '>' character to quote a passage of text. The text of a quote is automatically turned green and thus is often called "greentexting". It should be noted that a quote does not necessarily have to have been said in the thread, or even on the board to be displayed as a quote. Additionally, a user can use double pointers ('>>') to quote a whole post; this method also creates a link to the quoted post. If the post quoted does not exist, an error will be displayed when the link is clicked upon. Finally, a user can use triple pointers ('>>>') to quote a post on another 4chan board.
tripcodes
Tripcodes are a method in place which allow a user to temporarily be granted identity. When a user employs a tripcode, their name will display a unique hash which can help others identify the user. To use a tripcode, a user must include a '#' character in the name field, followed by a string that the server uses to associate the tripcode with the user. [8]

Ethics and controversy

4chan is the source of many ethical controversies and is in the new at least once every few months. Of primary concern is the site's staple of full anonymity which has lead to the rise of the Anonymous persona. Under this guise, participants will target any person or organization they have a disagreement with. The targets range from random, and otherwise unknown, people off the internet to groups like the Church of Scientology or companies like Google.[9]

Attempting to ruin lives

One mode of attack is to lure victims into revealing private or embarrassing information and then spreading it to the victim's friends and family. For instance, a 4chan user might go onto the site Omegle and pretend to be an underage girl. The 4chan user will then get the victim to make sexually explicit advances, by offering nude pictures for instance. The 4chan user will then ask for the victim's email or Facebook, so the pictures can be sent. Once this information is given, it becomes extremely easy to find the victim's family and friends. Using fake Facebook accounts, the 4chan user may then send screenshots of the conversation to these people with notes condemning the victim's actions.[10]

This kind of behavior is ripe for discussions on ethics. First, it demonstrates that one can never know and, therefore, should never trust a person who is anonymous. The consequences of this trust were previously made evident. Second, this is an example of one's online actions spilling over into the real-world, meaning that the boundaries between cyberspace and the real-world can be extremely porous. As such, one should be careful and mindful of the amount of their personal information being exposed online. Third, the 4chan user's actions are illegal in most jurisdictions, yet the user continues to break the law. This can be attributed to the user's high level of anonymity. It is highly unlikely that the person would ever be caught.

Dusty the cat

One of the original "Dusty the Cat" meme still-shots featuring Dusty having just been assaulted by the YouTube user glennspam1 using the pseudonym "Timmy."

On February 15th, 2009, two YouTube videos were posted from the account glennspam1 in which an adolescent called "Timmy" punched and threw his cat against the wall for several minutes [11]. Users of 4chan were upset by the videos and formed an IRC channel, called #catraid, in order to organize an effort to discover the identity of the attacker and deliver "græt justice". Within 48 hours, local police arrested Kenny Glenn, the perpetrator of the crime, and his brother, and charged them with animal abuse. Dusty the Cat and another cat were taken from the home and placed in a safe place.

Kenny Glenn will forever be known as the abuser of Dusty the cat due to the actions of /b/ members of 4chan. A large ethical concern of this case has to do with the "physical interaction" that occurred between members of /b/ and Kenny Glenn and his family. Kenny's reputation is permanently damaged and although this damage is a result of his actions, it can be questioned whether or not his punishment was appropriate for his crime.

Child pornography

Because /b/ has no set topic, users post a variety of images, ranging from highly disturbing gore, to sexually explicit and child pornography. Child Porn, commonly referred to as "CP", is joked about by posting pictures of Chris Hansen from the TV show To Catch a Predator and Pedobear. [12] Since users do get banned for posting actual child porn[13], they skirt the line by posting suggestive pictures of children, and explicit images of young boys and girls of questionable ages. This is done as a way of fostering simultaneous acceptance and rejection of the topic - so as to comply with the US government's age of consent law.

Although users are anonymous to each other, logs and other records of activity are kept by Christopher Poole. It is possible, therefore, for a government to obtain the IP logs of users for the site. These IP addresses, and the associated logs, can then be used as corroborating evidence in a trial.[14]

In one case, a 15-year-old California boy who uploaded child pornography to the site had a federal investigation launched against him. His house was raided by Homeland Security and his computers seized. It is unclear what criminal charges the boy may face.[15]

Desensitization

Since /b/ has virtually no filter for material, other than child pornography, users may become desensitized to content and images in real life that they otherwise would have been offended by, had they not seen them on 4chan. Material such as gore, dead bodies, and hardcore pornography will assault the unsuspecting user that enters the board for the first time. Therefore, some argue that /b/ is decreasing the sensitivity to offensive material of people in the real world.

Tripcodes

By using tripcodes on 4chan, one can create an identity for themselves amongst the anonymous population. However, this is typically looked down upon by most users. Even if a tripcode user posts good content and contributes to discussions, they are usually met with disdain. This is due to the culture of 4chan and the view that if someone attempts to create a consistent identity they are usually trying to "attention whore" or in other words trying to seek attention. Some users take this view to the extreme and use 4chan browser addons to automatically ignore and block all posts by users using tripcodes. Because of the disruption that using a tripcode continuously may bring, many hold the view that people should never use a tripcode unless necessary such as needing to identify yourself as the OP of a thread. But at the same time, users should be free to do what they want and should not be unfairly ignored for simply using tripcodes, especially if they are good contributors.

Media Attention

According to the Washington Post, "the site's users have managed to pull off some of the highest profile collective actions in the history of the internet." [16]

In late 2008, the private Yahoo! Mail account of Sarah Palin was hacked by 4chan user. This followed criticism of Palin and other politicians supposedly using private email accounts for government work. The hacker posted the password on /b/, and screenshots to wikileaks. [17]

See Also

References

  1. Zetter, Kim. Palin E-Mail Hacker Says It Was Easy. Wired. 2008-09-08. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
  2. Zetter, Kim. Sarah Palin E-mail Hacker Sentenced to 1 Year in Custody. Wired. 2011-11-10. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Justin Bieber Death Hoax. Snopes. Retreieved 2011-12-17.
  4. O'Connor, Maureen. How Justin Bieber Caught a Contagious Syphilis Rumor. '"Gawker. 2010-06-14. Retrieved 2011-12-17.
  5. TIME staff. The World's Most Influential Person Is... TIME. 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
  6. [1]
  7. Schwartz, Mattathias. The Trolls Among Us. The New York Times. 2008-08-03. Retrieved 2011-11-11.
  8. [2] 4chan - FAQ. Retrieved 2011-12-16.
  9. Barkham, Patrick. Hackers declare war on Scientologists amid claims of heavy-handed Cruise control The Guardian. 2008-02-03. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  10. Ultimate Omegle Trolling. 4chanarchive - /b/. 2010-12-10. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  11. Kenny Glenn Oh Internet. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  12. http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/people/chris-hansen
  13. http://encyclopediadramatica.ch/4chan_bans
  14. Saint, Nick. Here Is 4Chan Founder Moot's Full Testimony From The Palin Email Trial. Business Insider. 2010-08-10. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  15. Feds Raid Boy's Home Over 4chan Child Porn Post. The Smoking Gun. 2011-6-29. Retrieved 2011-12-07.
  16. [3] "The Washington Post." Retrieved 2011-12-15.
  17. [4]

External Links

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