People on TikTok are fueling a conspiracy theory that Helen Keller did not exist. In today’s Internet Insider:
- A lot happened the first week of 2021
- The unverified TikTok rumor about Kanye West and Jeffree Star
- How Cobra Kai became a Netflix hit
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BREAK THE INTERNET
The chaotic first week of 2021
Whoever thought we’d get some rest after 2020 ended was mistaken. The first full week of 2021 was filled with news of all kinds—from celebrity couple rumors to a full-on insurrection. There was also the first main Twitter character of the year, Bean Dad, as well as Mr. Bean himself speaking out against cancel culture.
The week was so intense that many people tweeted about giving up Dry January, an annual month-long break from alcohol, on only the sixth day in. Writer Heather Havrilesky summed it up best when she wrote, “DryTember has a nice ring to it,” suggesting delaying the no-alcohol practice until September, when, surely, we’d have more things figured out in the world. Right?
Whether you’re choosing to drink or not drink alcohol, this is probably going to be a long month year.
—Tiffany Kelly, culture editor
SPONSORED
Ditch your cable box (if you haven’t already) and let Hulu Live TV keep you amused instead. In our guide, we’ll explain everything from how much it costs to how to get the most out of the service. READ MORE
RUMORS
What’s up with Kanye West and Jeffree Star?
On Tuesday night, Page Six first reported that Kim Kardashian and Kanye West were preparing for an imminent divorce. The reasons for the split varied depending on which side you asked, but could infidelity have played a role?
One TikToker is alleging that West had been hooking up with a male beauty guru. Ava Louise, who has more than 500,000 followers on TikTok, first posted the rumor Monday night, and while she doesn’t name the beauty guru for fears of being sued, she implied who it was. Another TikToker named the guru as Jeffree Star, and the unverified rumor soon went viral on Twitter.
Star cheekily acknowledged the memes on social media. One tweet read, “I’m ready for Sunday Service,” a reference to West’s gospel group. On Thursday afternoon, he also released a video denying the allegations and said, “this whole thing is really funny.”
—Michelle Jaworski, staff writer
NOW STREAMING
The move to Netflix made ‘Cobra Kai’ a success
Cobra Kai, the (now) Netflix original series, follows the rekindled rivalry of Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka), 30 years after the All Valley Karate Championship. It’s a document of middle-age malaise, aimed partially at the Gen X/millennial audience that grew up with the Karate Kid movies.
Cobra Kai dominated Netflix’s Top 10 for weeks. It’s been at No. 1 since its season 3 release on Jan. 1. The Cobra Kai fandom has opened up the series to memes, theories, and shipping. (Johnny and Daniel, or LawRusso, are one popular ship on Twitter and TikTok.) Morgan, 18, runs the Out of Context Cobra Kai account, but says she wasn’t familiar with Cobra Kai before Netflix. She started watching it with her parents one day and got hooked.
“One of the things I love most about the show is how hilarious it is so I decided to start this account as a way to show people how funny the show is and to get more people to watch it,” she says.
—Audra Schroeder, senior writer
BEHIND THE SEAMS
In this week’s episode of Behind the Seams, we examine the visual similarity between dead wife characters on film. Dressed in pastel shades and soft fabrics, they represent a generic brand of domestic life. Subscribe
MEME OF THE WEEK
What will men do instead of going to therapy?
WORK SLACK
“No more beans.”
—Bryan Rolli, contributing editor, on all the bean news this week.
Whispers from the office
