Copypasta

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A copypasta is a block of text that is copied and pasted across the Internet by individuals through online forums and social networking websites. Copypastas are said to be similar to spam[1] as they are often used to annoy other users and disrupt online discourse.

History[]

The word "copypasta" was first used on Usenet groups in 2006.[2]

Etymology[]

The term "copypasta" is derived from the computer term "copy/paste", and can be traced back to an anonymous 4chan thread from 2006.[1][3]

Notable examples[]

Navy Seal[]

The Navy Seal copypasta is a lengthy, comically written, aggressive attack paragraph against a "kiddo", written in the voice of the stereotypical "tough guy", listing absurd accomplishments such as having "over 300 confirmed kills" and being "trained in gorilla [sic] warfare". This copypasta is often reposted as a humorous overreaction to an insult and is thought to have originated in a post on a 4chan message board from 11 November 2010.[4]

This copypasta is infamously used in the manifesto of the perpetrator of the Christchurch mosque shootings.[5]

Bee Movie[]

Main article: Bee Movie § Cultural influence

The Bee Movie copypasta dates back to 2013 where users would post the entire script of the Bee Movie onto websites such as Reddit and Tumblr.[6] This was popularised around the time when edits of the film were first being posted and popularized on YouTube in late 2016.[7]

See also[]

  • Creepypasta, brief, user-generated, paranormal stories intended to scare readers
  • Faxlore, similar content circulated by fax machine
  • Know Your Meme, a website and video series which researches and documents the history of Copypastas and similar content
  • Running gag, a recurring joke
  • Snowclone, a cliché and phrasal template that can be used and recognized in multiple variants
  • Shitposting, the practice of posting intentionally low-quality or provocative content to troll or solicit reactions from others

References[]

  1. ^ a b "What is Copypasta? - Definition from Techopedia". Techopedia.com. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  2. ^ "Words We're Watching: 'Copypasta'". Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  3. ^ Jaquez, Sophia (12 December 2018). "My Favorite CopyPastas". The County Current. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  4. ^ "What Does Navy Seal copypasta Mean?". Dictionary.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2018.
  5. ^ "The Honk Pill Troll Killer: Brenton Tarrant's Motives May Never be Known – if We're Not Careful". 28 March 2019.
  6. ^ Bergado, Gabe. "How Barry B. Benson Became an Internet A-Lister". Inverse. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  7. ^ "The Best Prank on Facebook Right Now Involves the Entire Transcript of Bee Movie". Intelligencer. 2 December 2015. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
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