KEY POINTS:
It was good to see expat Kiwi Jessica Lee Rose of Youtube, Lonelygirl15 fame pick up the best actress award at the Webby Awards in New York last night.
The winners were given just five words each to sum up their win on stage, something that should be applied to the Oscars too. Lonelygirl15 said: "Being traditional and saying thanks".
She'll probably be at the Oscars in a couple of years (maybe Peter Jackson can give her a role in the Dam Busters), and she's become the first true internet-made star.
She did so on the back of a cleverly conceived hoax. Rose made headlines last year when it was revealed the sweet webcam diaries she was posting regularly to Youtube, were the scripted creations of her and two ambitious film makers who were trying to make it in Hollywood.
The whole story is outlined in this Wikipedia article
The news crushed the hearts of thousands of loyal followers who thought Lonelygirl15 really was Bree, the lonely 16 year-old video blogger who wasn't happy with her life. As hoaxes go it was a good one.
After all, Youtube had become known as the place for people to bare their souls honestly via video, there was no reason to suspect Lonelygirl15 was an actress (though from looking at the videos it seems quite obvious now).
As Rose celebrates her win for duping her fans, another internet hoax closer to home has been uncovered.
It was with amusement that I watched a news report on TV (can't remember which news programme) the other night in which Australian George Noble-May was being interviewed about his bizarre idea of lacing Sydney rock oysters with Viagra, to create his own brand of aphrodisiac.
That was strange enough.But what caught my attention during the piece was Noble-May's comment that Google had sent an email to him to say the Viagra Oysters story had become the fastest growing internet story since 9/11 with "over 700,000 links in 24 hours".
Yeah right, I thought. Some story of international significance claims that title, but it's not one about Viagra-laced oysters.As it turns out, the email sent to Noble-May, was a hoax.
Google has denied sending the email which came from a seemingly genuine account corporate@google.com and Noble-May now admits he was duped.
His own story was interesting enough, but how much more credible was it made when viewers head it was the biggest story since 9/11? Quite a bit more I should think.
Never mind, hoaxes are good for business. Lonelygirl15 is on her way to Hollywood via the back door and everyone's is clambering for Viagra-laced oysters.
"I've got a billion dollar market out of Asia already," Noble-May told Australian reporters. "I've got Macau going nuts for them. I've got Moscow."
What are the other great internet hoaxes to have emerged? Did anyone ever watch lonelygirl15 and think she was genuine?
The local tech blogosphere:
Aardvark's technology answer to speeding motorists.
Geekzone on Microsoft's Photosynth.
Tze Ming Mok on being blocked by the Great Firewall of China.
