The Internet has done society a tremendous amount of good. It's connected us like never before, and has brought a wealth of information to the tips of our fingers. Yet, the Internet is a tough beast to tango with, and whether it's using social media, engaging with followers, or trying to sell a product, the web presents many potential pitfalls that could leave lives in ruins. Here we present some of the biggest FAILS in Internet history. And remember, the next time you're online: handle every click with care.
PREVIOUSLY: Defining Moments in the History of Internet Fails, Part 1
This feature is the second installment in an ongoing series.
Yahoo's Big Logo Build Up
For 29 days in August, Yahoo teased users every day with a new logo, leading up to their official new logo on the 30th day. Though the idea wasn't bad, the "new logos" turned out to be just versions of "Yahoo" in different fonts, something you could have done yourself in Microsoft Word, and not anything innovative or edgy. So, after a lame 29 days, time came for the big payoff on Sept. 5th, Yahoo unveiled a logo that was as uninspiring as any of the other 29 they showcased. Many in the tech industry made fun of the logo, and many users thought it was a joke. If you're going to hype up a product: make sure you deliver.
Wait maybe this is a prank
— Joshua Topolsky (@joshuatopolsky) September 5, 2013
American Airlines Tweets EVERYBODY
Qwikster
The Onion and Quvenzhane Wallis
During the Oscars this year, the satirical site, The Onion, had a momentary lapse in comedic judgement, and straight up called a nine-year-old girl a "c-nt." Seriously. During the biggest night of her life (so far.) It took about an hour for the publication to take down the tweet. But, like one critical tweeter wrote, "the Internet never forgets."
Fuck you, @theonion. Calling a 9 year old black girl a "c*nt" violates the most basic principles of what it means to be human. Fuck you.
— Xeni Jardin (@xeni) February 25, 2013
The Revenge of Amy's Baking Co.
Kmart and the Newtown Shootings
There have been plenty of times where a corporation has mistakenly used a hashtag to push a product without realizing it was trending because of a tragedy (Aurora). Worse than that is when a corporation knows full well that there is a tragedy going on, and they still try to push a product. This happened with Kmart, only six hours after the Newtown shootings. After sending out a sympathetic tweet, Kmart added the hashtag #Fab15Toys, a reference to a collection of toys they were pushing. Kmart tried cleaning up the tweet later by saying they were only trying to reach people who were checking the hashtag, but the outrage had already been sparked.
Tis the season to.... shop anwhere except @kmart (check the hashtags kids) pic.twitter.com/htLFw0Xk
— Jessica Gottlieb (@JessicaGottlieb) December 14, 2012
Pat Robertson's "Gay Ring" Theory
Taco Bell's Screwed Up Launch of Cool Ranch Doritos Locos Tacos
Esquire's "Falling Man" Glitch on Sept. 11th
On the 12th anniversary of 9/11 this year, Esquire had a very, very unfortunate glitch happen: on one of their stories featured on their homepage, the famous picture of a man jumping out of one of the burning towers on September 11, 2001, (known as the Falling Man) was placed next to a story called "Make Your Commute More Stylish." People freaked out because they thought Esquire has purposely done it, but, as it turned out, it was just a glitch. Understandable. Yet, Esquire had to then follow it up with this unapologetic tweet: