submit
About us T-Shirts Archives Contact Form Advertise here Store Blog Features Video BBS Twitter Facebook Tumblr RSS

Boing Boing 

Rickrolling is sexist, racist and often transphobic in context

By Rob Beschizza at 8:35 pm Thu, May 28, 2015

SHARE TWEET STUMBLE COMMENTS
rickrollThe rickroll is a kind of postmodern "shared joke" that can be used to dissipate online social anxiety—at least inasfar as everyone "gets" it. But among whom is that implicit context shared, really? The truth, according to this insightful longread at Medium, is that rickrolling is highly problematic, especially in its dependence upon the semiotics of cisgendered discourse. [via]
• Discuss this post in our forums

From our forums

  1. marilove
    May 29, 2015

    (shout-out to http://pixlr.com for quick image editing in-browser.)

  2. John_Farrier
    May 29, 2015

    "Would that Rickrollers had but one neck!" -- Caligula

  3. beschizza
    May 29, 2015

    The funny thing is that as a sociology graduate from the late 1990s, I'd have no problem confecting a critique of rickrolling from a critical/queer theory background. But none other than Judith Butler already did it, more or less, in "Performativity and the Pleasure Principle." By her standards it's a short read, worth a look.

  4. TheMudshark
    May 29, 2015

    10/10

    I listened to the whole thing out of respect.

  5. funruly
    May 29, 2015

    I have that same Trackman Marble, and Logitech does indeed provided a scroll function, albeit clunky: http://www.logitech.com/en-us/product/trackman-marble?crid=8

Continue the discussion at bbs.boingboing.net

161 more replies

Save copyright reform in the EU!

Even FLORIDA has a revenge porn law now

The end of the Silk Road for Ross Ulbricht: life in prison

Get the complete Arduino starter kit & course bundle for 85% off

Universal tablet stand in the Boing Boing Store

Boing Boing Store: The Surface 3 Giveaway

BOING BOING

Submit a tip
About Us
Contact Us
Advertise here

FOLLOW

Facebook
Twitter
Tumblr
RSS

Terms of Service

The rules you agree to by using this website.

Privacy Policy

Boing Boing uses cookies and analytics trackers, and is supported by advertising, merchandise sales and affiliate links.

Community Guidelines

Who will be eaten first?

EDITORS

Mark Frauenfelder
Cory Doctorow
David Pescovitz
Xeni Jardin
Rob Beschizza

Jason Weisberger, Publisher
Ken Snider, Sysadmin


Creative Commons License