With advertisers and marketers polluting the Web with scads of pseudo "viral videos" it's nice to see a legitimate one crop up.
In a lampoon of CNN and mainstream media, alternative news source The Onion informs us of an approaching disaster: "Entertainment Scientists Warn Miley Cyrus Will Be Depleted by 2013."
The Onion News Network reports that we're burning through the entertainment value of the teen-pop sensation "at far more aggressive rates" than we did of Lindsay Lohan or the Olsen twins. The latter women were "bountiful entertainment resources that our overconsumption reduced to smoldering remnants."
Tip: Pay attention to the graphs and to the ticker running across the bottom of the screen.
The expert from the Institute of Miley Research soberly tells viewers that within two years, society will be reduced to "roving tribes of barbarians constantly searching and fighting and scouring the landscape for the last remaining Miley Cyrus fashion doll."
Leave it to the folks at The Onion to remind us what viral videos are supposed to do: entertain.
Entertainment Scientists Warn Miley Cyrus Will Be Depleted by 2013
NB: The original title of this post, "Google To Acquire Controlling Stake in Microsoft," never made it past the draft stages.
Expect an onslaught of emo jokes: Satire publication The Onion will be providing audio, video, and print content to social-networking site MySpace through a partnership announced on Tuesday night. There is now a branded Onion page on MySpace, with article and blog content as well as audio podcasts; additionally, content from the publication's online video hub, the Onion News Network, is now available on the MySpaceTV portal.
The press release issued by the New York-based Onion (a full version is posted at the Silicon Alley Insider) is naturally tongue-in-cheek. "The news business is like the tobacco business: you want to reach new readers at as young and impressionable an age as possible," Sean Mills, president of The Onion, is quoted as saying. "MySpace was, of course, a natural partner in that regard."
"The Wall Street Journal is all well and good, but the Onion News Network represents the best in hard-hitting investigative journalism (at least on MySpace)," Jeff Berman, general manager of MySpace TV, added facetiously. "Also, we lost a bet."
The press release also gave some statistics that presumably are not a joke: The Onion boasts 4 million online readers and 3 million print readers per month. It's not yet clear how much of the Onion content on MySpace will be exclusive to the new branded page other than a new "Staff Blog," but we have pinged MySpace representatives and will provide more detail on Wednesday.
Since Apple has yet to reveal all the features of its upcoming iPhone, the satirists over at the Onion have taken it upon themselves to fill in the blanks.
Peruse their selections over here, but I did want to call out a few of my favorites to give you a taste.
• When moved from hand to ear, makes
Lightsaber sound effects.
• Has way, way more PRAM than the last thingy.
• Comes with an iPhone hat, so people know you own an iPhone during the brief periods you're not using it.
Apple and AT&T will set the iPhone free next Friday, in case you hadn't heard.
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