this post was submitted on 28 Dec 2025
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I'm here for memes, not snappy Xitter, 4Chan, reddit or similarly sourced screenshots of texts
(discuss.tchncs.de)
I didn't make this meme.
Then let me put it this way:
OP didn't say that memes can't be textual in nature, OP complains about snappy Twitter, 4Chan, Reddit (idk about this one? Reddit does have memes in some subs) or similarly sourced screenshots of texts.
Such posts, while possibly humorous, and occasionally a bit funny, are not spread rapidly by Internet users, and rarely posted with any variation.
Example 1 - this is a meme:
"Nanomachines, son!"
Example 2 - this is not a meme:
I mean, if the screenshot has been shared widely enough, it should be considered a meme by definition.
If the screenshot has been shared widely enough by many different people, yes, it should be considered a meme by definition.
"By many different people" isnt part of either of the above definitions. Also, whats "many?" Whats "different" mean in this context? What is the threshold for a meme to meme? 10 people? 100? 1000?
Richard dawkins coined the term in 1976 and defined it as such:
A meme “conveys the idea of a unit of cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation”
Seems like a screenshot of text seen by hundred/thousands/millions fits that defention to me.
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Example 2 is a meme, no doubt about it.
If you go any deeper than the surface-level Google definition (that you are pedantically picking apart), then you will find literally any idea or unit of culture is a meme.
Read the last chapter of Richard Dawkins' The Selfish Gene. Actually please read the whole book, it's a masterpiece of science popularization. Or read Susan Blackmore's The Meme Machine, it explains the concept of memes and how they evolve in further detail.
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Hahaha, looks like we're back to arguing about the old No True Memesmen falacy....
Screenshots of text that you don't like aren't memes because of reasons
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I like to throw this one around on occasion.
Edit: I'm looking through the community now in the past few hours...
I've been wondering for sometime as to why those kinds of posts weren't be removed and guided to another community. Like !microblogmemes@lemmy.world or !humor@lemmy.world
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Most of the "real" memes that get posted are terrible, so I can't say I mind too much.
Feel free to make your own quality memes.
I came here to say this to you. Be the change! Flood the zone with what you want to see. We'd all appreciate it.
That's literally what they did...
A meme is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme.
-Wikipedia
You can argue that many of the text posts do not meet the criteria, but just as many of the shitty image macros posted don't either.
You stopped reading too early.
I was the whole thing. That extra context still doesn't require image macros or exclude purely textual memes. Also good job continuing to break accessibility with laziness.
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I see a bit of both sides being argued in the comments here. We don't have a clear rule about this atm, so removals have been inconsistent and case-by-case, often based on reports.
Maybe I'll start and pin a discussion thread about this during the week (when we'll get the most eyes on it) and see what the wider community wants, and if desired, maybe we can come up with a rule wording that isn't too restrictive, but removes stuff that genuinely feels "off topic" for a memes page.
I'm here for snappy Xitter, 4Chan, reddit or similarly sourced screenshots of texts, cuz i won't open none of those sites.
Me: (come here to laugh.)
OP: (taking it real personal and arguing with everyone in the comments)
A meme is a meme, regardless if it has been screenshot. it is the content not the vessel
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wrong
Hear, fucking hear.
OP: 👏 TOMATO 👏 IS 👏 NOT 👏 A 👏 FRUIT 👏
Everyone: tomatoes are botanically considered a fruit
OP: ackshually I don’t like it in my fruit salad, therefore it is not a fruit
Let me fix this.
OP: 👏 TOMATO 👏 IS 👏 NOT 👏 A 👏 FRUIT 👏
Everyone: technically, a tomato is a fruit
OP: OK sure, but I don't want it in my fruit salad
Everyone: fair enough, that makes sense.
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I mean, it is though. A meme is an idea that has been spread, and even if that wasn't the literal definition of it, people have modified the idea of what a meme was into what it is now. You are simply outnumbered and clinging to an outdated definition.
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I mean I agree. But I also appreciate people finding the quality comedy on those places for me and sharing it here.
Maybe just start a "SocialMediaGems" sub or something.
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100% agree.
Anything humans spread around and share other than our DNA is a meme. The definition of a meme is "non-genetic information shared by any means."
the word meme gained a second definition on the internet, which is similar to the first but focused on specifically things intended to be funny. because context is a part of language whether you like it or not, that meaning is the one that is being used any time you see the word on the internet unless otherwise specified or unless the context in which you're seeing it is one where the other is more appropriate (like a discussion about linguistics or the spread of ideas).
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i hate that microblogmemes allows people to just post anything from any microblog platform. they always justify it with "well a meme is actually just a self-replicating idea" which is technically true, but it ignores the meaning the term 'meme' has on the internet, which is basically just an image based joke that plays off of internet culture in general, typically including previous memes. in the context of a scientific field like linguistics or phycology, the first definition makes more sense. in the context of an internet group with no scientific interest, the second is obviously correct. also they always use that excuse when they are posting US politics instead of memes, which is bullshit because there are communities for politics and political memes. dont make off-topic posts, go post it in a community where it is relevant.
Bravo!
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