TJ Kelly

Social Media Explained with Donuts: 2019 Version

Doug Ray lives outside Tampa Bay, FL. He published a photo on Instagram in 2012, and you’ve probably seen it.

Doug didn’t know it yet, but his photo was about to go viral.

The gram shows a hand-written list on a whiteboard, with a 2012-standard Instagram filter and black boarder. It had a short caption and a few hashtags— #socialmedia #socialmediaexplained… and #socialdonut.

Buzzfeed, Business Insider, and FunnyOrDie republished it within a week. Before long, AdWeek wrote about it.

Even The Atlantic referenced it in a piece about Google Plus.

Google Image results for “Social Media Explained with Donuts.” Doug’s is clearly not the only result.

Social Media Explained (Original 2012 Version)

Here’s what Doug Ray’s original “Social Media Explains with Donuts” meme said in 2012:

https://www.instagram.com/p/nm695/
With the viral success of this meme, you’d think the original would have more than 1k likes in 7 years.

Social Media Donuts meme text

If you find Instagram’s insistence on capping their media at 612×612 as infuriating as I do, you might enjoy this more readable text copy:

Twitter

I’m eating a #donut

Facebook

I like donuts

Foursquare

This is where I eat donuts

Instagram

Here’s a vintage photo of my donut

YouTube

Here I am eating a donut

LinkedIn

My skills include donut eating

Pinterest

Here’s a donut recipe

LastFM

Now listening to “Donuts”

Google+

I’m a Google employee who eats donuts.

@douglaswray The Original Social Media Explained with Donuts by Doug Ray / Three Ships Media. #socialmediaexplained #socialdonut #facebook #pinterest #linkedin #youtube #foursquare #twitter #instagram #socialmedia #googleplus #lastfm #memes #funnypics

2019 Social Media Donuts

It’s time to update Doug’s commentary for 2019. Social media has changed A LOT in seven years.

For starters, he lists few vestigial appendages— LastFM, Google+, and FourSquare… bygone remnants of the social landscape of yore.

So I updated it.

Here’s my take on the 2019 version of the social media donuts meme. See if you can spot a few familiar tropes—

I can’t decide if I like Facebook or YouTube best.

And here it is in plain text format, mostly for the googles.

Twitter

Donuts must immediately stop taking in pancakes from IHOP. This will be the destruction of donuts as we know it! Sad! #donutgate #dunkherup #dunkthewall

Facebook

BREAKING-Hillary admits she LIED about donut wall funding shutdownghazigate. WHEN will Dems wake up?-Breitbart

Foursquare

[crickets chirping]

Instagram

@world_record_donut Let’s set a world record together and get the most liked donut on Instagram. Beating the current world record held by Donut Jenner (18 million)! We got this 🙌 #LikeTheDonut #DonutSoldiers #DonutGang

YouTube

Heyyyyy guyyyyyys, donut heerreee. Thanks for watching and don’t forget to smash that subscribe button to get all my latest donut vidssss thaaaanksssss!

LinkedIn

There’s a paradigm shift coming to the donut industry. Comment below if you want to help pastry confections level up in 2019.

Pinterest

1,307 FIRE Donut Recipes with 297 DECADENT Glaze Varieties We Filmed in our $107,999 Kitchen Set for You to Try in Your Overpriced 317 Square Foot Apartment

LastFM

…what are you even doing here? Spotify is that way 👉

G+

[RIP]

Credit where credit is due, obviously

Definitely check out (and I’m proudly linking to) the original Social Media Explained with Donuts by Doug Ray/Three Ships Media.

Don’t steal. Even (especially?) on social media, where screenshotting and regramming is the norm.

Doug even has a Pinterest board dedicated to jerkwads who blatantly stole and plagiarized his idea. Strong work, Doug. Keep fighting the good fight!

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