Time flies when you’re having fun. Or at least it has for Christopher Poole, the founder of one of the most storied and controversial websites of the golden age of the internet. The image and message board 4chan is just about the most notorious internet haven, where pretty much all of those dank memes we know and love were spawned. Trollface, Pepe The Frog, Feels Guy – all these two dimensional online deities hailed from the board.
Founded in 2003, in a time when we hadn’t even started calling things memes, 4chan quickly became a hotbed for our younger selves to express themselves with some “interesting” results. Above all the chaos of the image board, there was Moot, the one and only admin.
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A man whose head has been photoshopped onto some of the most x-rated images in the world, Poole established his Moot persona as the benevolent overlord of arguably the worst, and most loved, site on the internet.
After over a decade of surveying the organized chaos which is 4chan, Moot retired from his post in order to become an internet entrepeneur, with mixed results. However, it was revealed today by Poole on his blog that he has now been hired by Google, a seemingly unlikely choice of employer.
Announcing the move on his Tumblr blog, Poole hinted that social media was the main focus of his employment.
“When meeting with current and former Googlers, I continually find myself drawn to their intelligence, passion, and enthusiasm — as well as a universal desire to share it with others. I’m also impressed by Google’s commitment to enabling these same talented people to tackle some of the world’s most interesting and important problems.
I can’t wait to contribute my own experience from a dozen years of building online communities, and to begin the next chapter of my career at such an incredible company.”
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Google’s own social media endeavors are also storied, mainly as the butt of every joke. Google+ was somewhat of a damp squib, so it’s no small wonder the company is seeking out old hands from the web to perhaps start something new. The model on 4chan is slightly odd compared to other social media sites – the board still uses the tried and tested posting methods from back in the day.
However, online community management isn’t a skill that gets taught in school, and Poole’s decade of managing the madness over at 4chan could serve Google well. Hopefully whatever they plan to put together with Christopher will work a lot better than Google+.
Source: Tumblr
Via: The Guardian