2011 was probably the lamest summer in recent history, due in no small part to the seemingly endless barrage of "position crazes" (I really don't know what else to call them) to wind their way down the internets. First there was planking. Then there was owling. Cone-ing. Pillaring. Hawking. Carmageddoning. Horsemaning. Backlashing. Chenning. And now, Batmanning, which was allegedly thought up by the Purdue students in the above video, and not some Warner Bros. viral marketing department. Right. Either way, it's about as cool as rubber nipples on a Robin suit. Next up, Rodining (recreating The Thinker on the john), Regising (perching on a high chair and staring off in befuddlement) and Bachmanning (pleasuring oneself with a hairbrush handle). Get out there and snap those crazy pics, kids!

On the internet, "u mad, bro?" (and its earlier cousin "you mad?") is a classic meme deployed to maximize the rage-inducing effects of trolling. In real life—where people are somewhat less familiar with the trollface oeuvre—it can be taken a little differently.

Remember the awkward girl in pink who made a memorable appearance dancing next to Rebecca Black in her "Friday" music video? Well, her name is Benni Cinkle, she's a real life friend of Rebecca, and yesterday she released a music video for her debut single, "Can You See Me Now." Here it is in all its auto-tuned, melodramatic, teens-in-crisis glory. [via ONTD]

Gene Leonhardt, whose odd threats in defense of his daughter Jessi "Slaughter" spawned several internet in-jokes, has died of a heart attack at 53. In March, he was arrested for punching Jessi, who now lives in foster care. [via @Beschizza]

The idea of the "internet craze" has outlived its usefulness. The half-life from internet meme to morning talk show segment is zero. It's time for journalists to retire this dumb pop cultural crutch. Every goddamn thing that happens on the internet is not an internet craze.

The last time we checked in with accidental viral video star Jessi Slaughter, things were bleak. But in a new video, she looks remarkably OK and says she's living in foster care, away from her abusive dad.

After a 24-hour silence following yesterday's blitz of media attention, the mysterious @CondeElevator tweeted a monologue that sounds an awful lot like a farewell. Is this @CondeElevator's swan song?

Sure, England's been convulsed by riots likely to have devastating social and economic impacts for months, but at least a funny meme is coming out of it.

Ark Music Factory pioneered the internet hate slingshot with Rebecca Black, catapulting her from dire cyberbullying victim to mainstream fame. It appears that's also their strategy with their newest terrible music video.

Obviously, this is not the real Rebekah Brooks singing her inner monologue to the tune of Rebecca Black's "Friday." If real Rebekah Brooks were to sing her inner monologue, it would be a string of British curse words set to the Wicked Witch of the West's theme song in the Wizard of Oz. Until the internet gets around to that, here is a much cuter version of "Rebekah Brooks" singing about "Phone hacking, phone hacking, hey! Sun, Sun, Sun, Sun." [AdWeek]

On Monday, Rebecca Black assaulted us with the music video for her latest single, "My Moment." Now, behold its behind-the-scenes counterpart. In this clip, Rebecca talks about wardrobe fittings (fun!), dancing (so glad to be getting back into it!), kids struggling with bullying (she knows how you feel!) and more. Is her moment over with yet?

Man, was that a gas or what? Two-plus hours of doddering and selective senility, with a surprise splosh party and French manicure attack thrown in for good measure! One day, we'll have a better understanding of what the Murdochian Inquisition meant in the grand scheme of things; but for now, let's just take a moment to savor the bounty of fresh memes it's produced. These memes to us be blessed, amen.

Here it is, Rebecca Black's new single: "This Is My Moment." That she released it on a Monday says a lot about how ready she is to move past "Friday." Good luck with that!

We're not going to actually show you five million 4chan posts, since we and all of you would likely be sent to prison for a long time. But here's a word cloud generated from 5,576,095 posts. (Click on the photo above to enlarge.)

Teen meme Rebecca Black is releasing a new single on July 18th. It's called "My Moment," and was written by legit songwriters and produced by a guy who works with Hilary Duff. So, it might not inspire another uncontrollable spasm of internet hate.

If you need more proof that anything is possible on the internet: The lead singer of '90s rock group Smash Mouth is preparing to eat 24 eggs for charity after people bugged him to on Twitter.

Patrice Wilson, CEO of Ark Music Factory and the man responsible for Rebecca Black, has had a busy week: He just premiered the music video of his newest artist, Lexi St. George, on Good Morning America. We spoke to him about the surprising success that's come from "Friday," the most-hated YouTube video of all time.

After we learned that Rebecca Black's "Friday" had been removed from YouTube due to a legal squabble, we vowed that today would be our last Friday ever. What's the point of living in a world without this video? But it's back, and better (?) than ever.

New Zealand PM John Key apparently doesn't mind the deadly, coma-inducing Australasian internet craze called planking. In fact, he supports it. In a picture posted to the Facebook group Planking New Zealand over the weekend, his son Max is seen planking in the premier's residence under the watchful eyes of his father. Just what kind of message is John Key sending to the youth of his nation?

Apple's got quite the reputation as being a tough employer, so once they catch wind of employees planking on the job, will they follow Woolworths in giving them the sack? That's a precious MacBook Pro he's planking on! [Gizmodo]