People are taking to the internet to post their memes about the Australian breakdancer, but you may find that the images are disappearing
When something goes big on the internet a tsunami of memes and videos follows with the explosive inevitability of vomiting after eating medium rare chicken.
This has certainly been the case with Australian breakdancer Raygun, whose performance at the Olympics has sent the internet into a viral frenzy, if not a food poisoning one.
Now we are in the stage where the internet is inundated with the memes and comments around Raygun’s Olympic breaking performance.
But as they go up in floods, some eagle-eyed internet users might also be noticing that the clips are also starting to disappear from the internet.
And there is a very specific reason that the videos and pictures of Raygun are vanishing from the web as they are being put up.
We’re allowed to post this one. (Elsa/Getty Images)
The clips might be posted online, but that most certainly does not release them from the laws governing who can post what.
So if you are posting something which has flagged up, then it’s possible that your post will get flagged up over it.
This is of course a matter of who holds the copyright over the footage of Raygun’s viral performance.
And in the case of Raygun’s performance the clips are owned by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
While there might be an army of people sharing and posting clips from the viral moment there are also people who are working to have the copyright-violating posts removed.
In fact the IOC has been relentless in its pursuit of any posts which violate copyright law.
This is because the videos themselves are owned by the IOC, and the organisation has issues a number of notices for anyone found to be posting without their permission.
These posts would violate the DMCA (Digital Millennium Copyright Act).
And yes, this includes posting them to your social media feeds on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram.
And this one. (Elsa/Getty Images)
So if you want to avoid your account being served a notice for posting copyrighted material it might be best to avoid those memes.
Raygun’s performance sparked controversy at the Olympics with some questioning how she was selected.
In her first statement since her appearance she opened up about her experiences.
A video posted on August 15, she said: “I really appreciate the positivity and I’m glad I was able to bring some joy into your lives, that’s what I hoped.”
She continued: “I didn’t realise that would also open the door to so much hate, which has frankly been pretty devastating.
“But I went out there and had fun.
“I worked my butt off preparing for the Olympics and I gave it my all, truly. And I am honoured to have been part of the Australian team and part of Australia’s breaking debut.”
