Should we bring the “old internet” back? A plan to bring back the memes of the 2010s taps into a growing sense that the internet was once a better place.
TikTokers plan for ‘great meme reset’
Classic templates: Sammy Griner (bottom right) became "the Internet's most famous baby" when he was dubbed "Success kid" in the early 2010s — while Maverick Trevillian (left) gained similar fame as the "67 kid" this year. Glossary
Meme - A funny image, video, text or idea etc that is shared quickly online.
AI - A computer programme that has been designed to think.
6-7 - “6-7” is a modern internet meme and slang term used mostly by Gen Alpha. It has no real meaning — people say it as a random, funny inside joke. It started from a rap song and spread through social-media and basketball culture.
Nostalgia - The feelings of happiness and slight sadness you get when remembering the past.
Brain rot - An informal slang term for the mental decline or cognitive deterioration that supposedly comes from consuming too much low-quality, trivial, or unchallenging online content.
Hybrid - A mixture of two distinct species that combine to form one organism.
Implicit - Suggested or to be understood though not clearly or directly stated.
Ingenuity - Inventiveness and creativity.
Twitter - A social media network, now known as X and owned by Elon Musk.
Cognitive - Relating to the processes of thinking and reasoning.
Misinformation - Incorrect or misleading information unintentionally presented as fact. It can be contrasted with disinformation or deliberate lies.
Inane - Lacking sense or real meaning.