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bookbug87 (![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} bookbug87) wrote in ![[info]](http://www.journalfen.net/img/community.gif){kind=small} fandom_wank,@ 2006-09-12 19:58:00 |
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| Current mood: | *thud* |
Lonelygirl15 is not real! Oh noez!
Dear despotic overlords mods of FW: I am posting this to fandom_wank based on the assumption that the videos depicting lonelygirl15 aka Bree are deliberate works of fiction and therefore this wank report does not violate the "no minors" rule.
Should pigs fly evidence emerge that lonelygirl15 is real, I will delete this post without complaint.
For those of you who are regulars over at YouTube, this will probably be old news. For those who have not yet heard about lonelygirl15, read on...
Since others have already summarized events much better than I could, I'll start things off with a quote:
Lonelygirl15 appears to be an innocent, home-schooled 16-year-old, pouring her heart out for her video camera in the privacy of her bedroom. But since May, her brief posts on the video-sharing site YouTube and the social networking hub MySpace have launched a Web mystery eagerly followed by her million-plus viewers: Who is this sheltered ingenue who calls herself "Bree," and is she in some sort of danger — or, worse, the tool of some giant marketing machine?And a few relevant links:
Lonelygirl15 on YouTube
Danielbeast on YouTube
Lonelygirl on MySpace
Lonelygirl's official fansite (site has been crashing frequently over the past several days - but you can still see some of it in Google's cache)
Many were skeptical from the start about the unusually high quality of the videos and the fact that they seemed more scripted than real. However, the shit didn't really hit the fan until last Thursday, when the LA Times published its first article detailing the evidence that the videos were the work of pros. Shortly after, the following post was made to the lonelygirl15.com forum by "The Creators":
To Our Incredible Fans,(I have screencaps of the post and responses if the site goes down again)Thank you so much for enjoying our show so far. We are amazed by the overwhelmingly positive response to our videos; it has exceeded our wildest expectations. With your help we believe we are witnessing the birth of a new art form. Our intention from the outset has been to tell a story-- A story that could only be told using the medium of video blogs and the distribution power of the internet. A story that is interactive and constantly evolving with the audience.
Right now, the biggest mystery of Lonelygirl15 is "who is she?" We think this is an oversimplification. Lonelygirl15 is a reflection of everyone. She is no more real or fictitious than the portions of our personalities that we choose to show (or hide) when we interact with the people around us. Regardless, there are deeper mysteries buried within the plot, dialogue, and background of the Lonelygirl15 videos, and many of our tireless and dedicated fans have unearthed some of these. There are many more to come.
To enhance the community experience of Lonelygirl15, which you have already helped to create, we are in the process of building a website centered around video and interactivity. This website will allow everyone to enjoy the full potential of this new medium. Unfortunately, we aren't programmers. We are filmmakers. We are working furiously to complete the website, and hope to have it up and running shortly.
So, sit tight. You are the only reason for our success, and we appreciate your devotion. We want you to know that we aren't a big corporation. We are just like you. A few people who love good stories. We hope that you will join us in the continuing story of Lonelygirl15, and help us usher in an era of interactive storytelling where the line between "fan" and "star" has been removed, and dedicated fans like yourselves are paid for their efforts. This is an incredible time for the creator inside all of us.
Thank you.
The LA Times follows up with a second article.
I haven't collected any quotes from the lonelygirl15.com forum since the site was down during most of the time I was compiling this. Also, the real versus fake debate seems to be mostly civilized there - the real wank is over at YouTube.
Reactions in the comments on lonelygirl15's YouTube profile fall into one of several categories:
-I knew it all along
-I don't care if it's real or fake, I just like watching the videos
-ZOMG U BETRAYED US U FAKER!!!!11!!!1!!
-i believe ur real bree! dont listen to the haters, plz post more!
-You people need to get a life
I've posted a selection of the more amusing comments here.
lonelygirll5 | September 08, 2006Screencap of the post is here.
What?! Do you all really believe what some anonymous poster said on my forums? Give me a break. Anyone can join those forums and pick any name they want. Some faker posted that crap letter and you all bought it. How can you all be so naive? How can all of you just flip out based on what a bunch of haters say about me? That's totally unfair. You know, either way, this is done. I am tired of all the lies, mean remarks and sick sex comments. To all of those who were my friends, who took the time to write to me, to help me, and show me that you cared: thank you. You all meant more to me than I was ever really able to say. Thank you. Goodbye. Sincerely, Bree Crowley.
ETA: Crap, I totally missed that this was a fake account (lonelygirll5 not lonelygirl15).
Much wanking, spamming, and speculation continues unabated in the profile and video comments for both lonelygirl15 and danielbeast. There's also lots of wank discussion and analysis of these shenanigans in the general blogosphere and news media:
http://www.slumdance.com/blogs/brian_fle
http://nymag.com/arts/tv/features/19376/i
http://www.zephoria.org/thoughts/archive
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Lonely
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_qu
http://www.technorati.com/search/lonelyg
http://community.livejournal.com/ohnothe
ETA2: Someone please tell me this person is not actually serious. o_0
