¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Another day, another Facebook feature that makes me wonder if I should gtfo. One day, when we're all reduced to Facebook drones -- sitting in dark, Soviet-style offices, bloodshot eyes glued to our newsfeeds, Soylent pumping through our pale veins -- I will probably look back at this day and think, why didn't I take a stand? Until that day, however, Facebook is basically the new Shazam. (Cool!) Onward, to the links:
1. A puzzle: If someone puts a lie on Wikipedia and everyone repeats it ... does the lie become true? The more you think about it, the more chicken-and-egg confusing it gets. Someone adds a dumb joke to a Wikipedia entry. Journalists repeat it. Other journalists repeat them. Future Wikipedia editors source from journalists. "The logical outcome of that process is that the wisdom of the crowd often rules -- as insensible as the crowd can be."
2. The Internet ruined America's last great movie star. The downfall of Tom Cruise began that fateful day in 2005 when the actor -- like a MADMAN -- jumped on Oprah's couch. Except, it turns out, he really didn't jump on Oprah's couch, and there was nothing particularly crazy about the entire exchange. It was a (very early) viral video-maker who made the whole thing up ... and brought the actor down.
3. A short appreciation of ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. The unpronounceable emoticon -- The Awl calls it a "shruggie" -- "is fundamentally connected to the experience of being online, in part because it cannot be spoken, only acted or typed." It's also the default Internet response to everything. Welp! Okay.
What's that baby moose doing at Tim Horton's, eh?
Pocketables: Two today -- inside Silicon Valley's laundry-app race, which should be relevant to all our lives (5483 words/22 minutes); and inside the disastrous romance of two Vine superstars, which shouldn't be (6061 words/24 minutes).
Postscripts: Cat forts. Skippables. Beer-based shampoos. This is a GIF of a Vine of a Video and this is a robot that mixes cocktails. Why does it pays to complain by Twitter? Why do you do those embarrassing things? Twitter and Facebook are ruining us, according to Emma Thompson. But in light of this "Marry Harry" thing, I think the blame falls on TV.
Until tomorrow!
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