This article is part of Know Your Meme’s 2014 State of the Internet series looking back at some of the most memorable and popular memes, events, subcultures, sites and people that made their mark online this past year.
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umerous individuals managed to shake up the Internet this year in a variety of ways, including plenty of hilarious stunts, bizarre appearances and a slew of heated controversies. In Hollywood, Aubrey Plaza was cast as the voice of the Internet's favorite ill-tempered feline Grumpy Cat, while Shia LaBeouf weirded everyone out with his bizarre publicity stunts and performance art. Lena Dunham found herself constantly making headlines during the publicity tour for her book Not That Kind of Girl, which contained graphic and controversial descriptions of her sexual history.
In music, Richard James released his first album as Aphex Twin in 13 years with Syro, Beyoncé inspired a new meme based on her pronunciation of the word "surfboard" in the single "Drunk in Love" and a googly-eyed childhood photo of Miley Cyrus launched an exploitable photoshop meme.
Vloggers were out in full force, with Rog and Tyrone providing hilarious testimonials from 4chan, Kid President launching his television series on the Hub Network and Total Biscuit leading the way for GamerGate off the heels of the Quinnspiracy.
On a more somber note, several inspiring figures were lost this year as well, including Instagram's Grandma Betty and actors Richard Attenborough, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Robin Williams.
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Profile: This star of the reality television series Keeping Up with the Kardashians is often cited as an example of a "celebutante."
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Notable Events: In April, Kardashian was featured in a controversial Vogue Magazine cover with husband Kanye West, followed by a rather racy Paper Magazine cover in November where she exposed her bare butt. Additionally, the reality television star released the successful freemium mobile game Kim Kardashian: Hollywood.
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Social Media Stats: Facebook: 24 Million Likes | Twitter: 26 Million Followers
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Benchmarks: Google Trends | (Kim Kardashian > Beyonce > Kanye West)
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Profile: Starting out as a country star in Nashville, Tennessee, this singer-songwriter has since moved to New York City and drifted toward the pop genre in recent times.
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Notable Events: Swift made a splash with her controversial "Shake it Off" music video, which came under fire for "cultural appropriation." Additionally, the star embraced her hilarious "No, it's Becky" Tumblr meme by wearing a shirt with the phrase printed on the front.
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Social Media Stats: Facebook: 72 Million Likes | Twitter: 48 Million Followers
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Benchmarks: Google Trends | (Miley Cyrus > Taylor Swift > Katy Perry > Lorde)
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Profile: This professional basketball player has won numerous awards and secured several lucrative endorsement deals.
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Notable Events: In June, LeBron inspired an image macro series after announcing he would be opting out of the final year of his contract with the Miami Heat. The following month, Twitter users launched the hashtag #BeforeLeBronDecides before he revealed he would be returning to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
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Social Media Stats: Facebook: 22 Million Likes | Twitter: 16 Million Followers
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Benchmarks: Google Trends | (Jensen Ackles > Jared Padalecki > Misha Collins)
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Profile: This polarizing feminist vlogger has remained a central figure in the online gender war since launching a Kickstarter project in 2012, which she received over $150,000 in donations for after publicizing that she was the victim of an online harassment campaign.
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Notable Events: Sarkeesian was back in the limelight this year after jumping into the front lines of the GamerGate battle, which she claims led to her being forced to flee her home after receiving death threats. She was met with opposition from the likes of "Factual Feminist" Christina Hoff Sommers, who has since become affectionately known as "Based Mom" by GamerGate supporters.
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Social Media Stats: Facebook: 82,000 Likes (unofficial) | Twitter: 219,000 Followers
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Benchmarks: Google Trends | (Drake > Kanye West > Gucci Mane > Tyler the Creator)
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Profile: This Jihadist militant group horrified the world this year by spreading morbid photographs and videos on social media.
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Notable Events: The terrorist group brutally murdered journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff by beheading and shared video of the cruel acts online. In reaction to their heinous crimes, people all around the world began burning the IS flag in photos and videos shared on Twitter and YouTube.
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Social Media Stats: Twitter (unofficial): 17,700 Followers
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Benchmarks: Google Trends | (Drake > Kanye West > Gucci Mane > Tyler the Creator)
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Actors & TV Personalities
Musicians
Bloggers & Vloggers
Public Officials
Visual Artists
Athletes
The Departed
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