About

"Stop Posting" is an online expression commonly used on discussion forums and imageboards in response to another participant's spam or post that is deemed uninteresting or irrelevant to the thread topic. The phrase has since evolved into a reaction GIF series featuring various subjects grimacing in frustration or pleading out of desperation.

Origin

"Stop posting" is a commonly used phrase that has its root in Usenet newsgroups and discussion forum, where a participant may spam or flood the same post repeatedly and derail conversations. The earliest known instance of "Stop Posting" image macro appeared on October 21st, 2005 via Subchat Forum^[1] where forum member Flatbush41 told another user AIM:

Spread

The same image has been since re-used on popular imageboards like 4chan^[5] and other forums including FARK^[2], Newgrounds^[3] and eBaumsworld^[4], as well as several non-English language forums. The Google Insights data indicates that the meme began to see significant spike in popularity with the circulation of this particular animated GIF file beginning sometime in late 2008:

In October 2009, a Facebook Page^[6] called "Stop Posting Crap Every 2 Seconds" was launched. Another notable derivative emerged sometime in 2009, featuring a kitten's paw placed over a person's hand and the caption that read: "it's time to stop posting." The image also spawned a spin-off instance featuring Pinkie Pie following the emergence of of Bronies and My Little Pony fandom on 4chan imageboards in late 2010.

Notable Examples

Search Interest

External References