5 Minutes of Fame

Nov 21 2006 Published by Jay under Random Mayhem

It seems that everywhere I look, there are people in this world getting famous off the internet. Whether be it a mindless website that scrutinizes celebrities such as Britney Spears, Lindsy Lohan, or TomKat, or kids with their parents’ Handycam with way too much time, the internet pop-phenomenon has grown to staggering heights. Even though it would seem easy grab a webcam and shake your obesity for the world to see (such as the Numa Numa song), it’s not easy obtaining your 5 minutes (or more likely seconds) of fame.

I remember a time when receiving a couple hundred hits on your video game fan-site (not that I had one…) would bring so much joy. This, of course, was due to the fact that there were only a couple hundred people on the internet at any given point in time anyway. Nowadays, hits are measured in the tens of millions as the online population has exploded into a global community. Web conglomerates such as Amazon, eBay, Yahoo, Google have established themselves into Meccas of the internet addicted. It’s hard to compete with these huge monstrosities and win the affection of avid internet surfers, so people resort to David vs. Goliath tactics by flinging crap all over the internet. Case in point: YouTube and Digg. Both sites allow for user generated content to reach the millions of viewers in cyberspace, allowing for infinite possibilities.

Why not try practicing with a Katana?

How about keeping up to date with the happenings at UCLA?

With these new tools at one’s disposal, it would seem like garnering notoriety would be a simple task. But to create something that can shine through the mountainous piles of dung would be difficult indeed. For every interesting picture, video, or article, thousands of craptacular imitations must exist outside the view of the general public. What could I possibly create?

Thus is my dilemma, and my challenge to overcome these adversities and become famous among internet geeks everywhere. The tools are there. The audience is there. It’s just a matter of time now. After all, why can’t I have my 5 minutes of fame?

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