# Confession Bear > Confession Bear is a 2012 Reddit advice animal meme featuring a melancholy Malayan sun bear used for confessing taboo secrets, guilty admissions, and unpopular opinions. Confession Bear is an advice animal image macro featuring a melancholy-looking Malayan sun bear, used to share taboo admissions, guilty secrets, and unpopular opinions. Created on Reddit in June 2012, it became one of the most popular and controversial advice animal formats, peaking when a user appeared to confess to an actual murder through the meme in April 2013. ## Origin The source photograph was taken by German photojournalist Clemens Bilan and uploaded to the Getty Images stock photo database on April 12, 2007[2]. The image sat unused as a meme template for five years. On June 21, 2012, Reddit user F-18Bro submitted a post to r/AdviceAnimals titled "I have a lot of weird stuff that I'd like to be able to confess to reddit so I can get it off my chest, so I made Confession Bear." The attached image macro featured the sun bear with the caption "I absolutely love / the smell of my own balls"[2]. The post pulled in over 13,000 upvotes and 1,100 comments within four days, establishing both the format and its tone in a single post[2]. - **Platform:** Reddit (r/AdviceAnimals) - **Creator:** F-18Bro (original poster), Clemens Bilan (photographer of source image) - **Date:** 2012 ## Overview Confession Bear uses a photograph of a Malayan sun bear resting its head against a log, looking vaguely ashamed or troubled. The format follows standard advice animal conventions: white Impact font text split between the top and bottom of the image, with the confession divided across both lines. Confessions range from mild and relatable ("I like the smell of gasoline") to genuinely dark admissions about relationships, workplace behavior, and personal failings. The bear's sad, downcast expression gives the format its emotional weight, making even trivial confessions feel dramatic[2]. What set Confession Bear apart from other advice animals was its invitation to share things people wouldn't say out loud. While most image macros relied on humor or relatability, Confession Bear specifically encouraged taboo disclosures, creating a strange mix of anonymous therapy and competitive shock value on Reddit's r/AdviceAnimals[1]. ## How It Spread Confession Bear spread fast within its first day of existence. Hours after F-18Bro's original post on June 21, 2012, a dedicated page appeared on the image macro site Quickmeme, a single-topic blog launched at ConfessionBear.com, and a @ConfessionBear_ Twitter account went live[2]. That same day, other Redditors began riffing on the format. User Zmo64 posted a Bear Grylls crossover ("Sometimes / I drink my own piss"), while PhtoJoe submitted a Futurama Fry macro commenting on the types of confessions people were making[2]. Two days later, on June 23, The FW named Confession Bear their staff favorite in a "Funniest Memes of the Week" roundup alongside Overly Attached Girlfriend[4]. The meme also spread to Tumblr under the tag #confession bear[2]. By June 25, the Quickmeme page had accumulated over 1,800 submissions[2]. Derivative formats quickly emerged. On August 6, 2012, Redditor Zachcvh posted "Confession Tiger," an image macro of a bored tiger captioned "I ate that bear," spawning a brief rivalry storyline between the two animals[2]. Throughout 2012 and 2013, at least 80 Confession Tiger variants appeared on r/AdviceAnimals[2]. In April 2013, "Confession Kid" joined the family when Redditor Notmiefault posted a version featuring a child recalling naive childhood beliefs[2]. ## How to Use The format is straightforward: 1. Start with the standard Confession Bear image (the Malayan sun bear resting against a log) 2. Write the setup or context on the top line in white Impact font 3. Put the actual confession on the bottom line 4. The confession typically reveals something embarrassing, taboo, or socially unacceptable ## Cultural Impact The Naratto murder confession incident in April 2013 drew coverage from The Daily Dot, Gawker, International Business Times, UpRoxx, MSN, and NBC San Diego, making Confession Bear one of the few meme formats to trigger an actual police investigation[5][7][6]. The San Diego Police Department's cold case team investigated the tip, treating it with the same seriousness as any other lead[5]. Comedy Central's @midnight incorporated Confession Bear as a recurring game segment during the show's 2013-2017 run, bringing the format to a television audience[3]. The show was nominated for Outstanding Interactive Program at the 66th Primetime Emmy Awards and won Outstanding Social TV Experience at the 67th[3]. The meme also sparked discussions about anonymity, accountability, and the strange intersection of internet humor with real-world consequences. The fact that Naratto posted from his main account rather than a throwaway became a point of fascination. As Reddit user Mr_Burnside commented: "I think that takes more guts than the murder itself"[1]. ## Fun Facts - The original sun bear photograph sat in the Getty Images archive for five years before anyone turned it into a meme template[2]. - F-18Bro's very first Confession Bear was about enjoying the smell of his own balls, setting a tone the format never quite shook[2]. - The Quickmeme page for Confession Bear accumulated over 1,800 submissions in just four days after launch[2]. - Naratto's murder confession post received almost exactly as many downvotes (8,864) as upvotes (10,190), reflecting the community's deep split on whether to engage with the content[6]. - Mission Bay High School in San Diego confirmed enrollment records as part of the investigation into the Confession Bear murder post[5]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Confession Bear? Confession Bear is an advice animal image macro featuring a sad-looking Malayan sun bear, used to share secrets, guilty admissions, and unpopular opinions. It was created on Reddit's r/AdviceAnimals in June 2012[2]. ### Where did Confession Bear come from? Reddit user F-18Bro created the format on June 21, 2012, using a stock photo taken by photographer Clemens Bilan in 2007[2]. ### What does Confession Bear mean? The meme is used to confess things people feel too embarrassed or ashamed to say openly. Confessions range from trivial guilty pleasures to genuinely dark admissions[2][1]. ### How do you use Confession Bear? Place white Impact font text over the sun bear image. The top line sets up the context, and the bottom line delivers the confession. The format works best with genuinely taboo or embarrassing content[2]. ### Is Confession Bear still popular? Confession Bear peaked during 2012-2013 and is now a classic advice animal format. While no longer a dominant Reddit format, it's still widely recognized and occasionally used[4][2]. ### What was the Confession Bear murder post? In April 2013, Reddit user Naratto posted a Confession Bear claiming he killed his sister's abusive meth-addict boyfriend by overdosing him with his own drugs. The post received over 10,000 upvotes and sparked a real police investigation[1][5]. ### Did anyone get arrested from the Confession Bear murder confession? The San Diego Police Department's cold case team investigated the tip but treated it as a lead to be vetted. Lt. Kevin Mayer told NBC 7 that they were still determining credibility during the preliminary investigation[5]. ### Who was Naratto on Reddit? Naratto was identified by other Reddit users and Gawker as Colton R. Goodbrand, a San Diego resident and former Mission Bay High School student. He confirmed making the post but initially claimed it was a joke with "some truth behind it"[2][5]. ### Was the Confession Bear murder real? It was never conclusively determined. Naratto claimed it was partially true before deleting his account. Police investigated but the outcome of that investigation was not publicly reported[1][5]. ### What is Confession Tiger? A derivative meme created on August 6, 2012, featuring a bored tiger captioned "I ate that bear." It spawned about 80 variants on r/AdviceAnimals as a rival to Confession Bear[2]. ### Was Confession Bear featured on TV? Yes. Comedy Central's @midnight (2013-2017) included a recurring "Confession Bear" segment where panelists completed partial Reddit confessions for laughs[3]. ### What kind of bear is in Confession Bear? It's a Malayan sun bear. The original photo was taken by photojournalist Clemens Bilan and submitted to Getty Images on April 12, 2007[2]. ## References 1. [Redditor uses popular meme to confess a murder]() 2. [confession+bear | Tumblr]() 3. [110 Baby Animals Looking Sad]() 4. [Confession Bear - Know Your Meme]() 5. [@midnight]() 6. [Funniest Memes of the Week – Overly Attached Girlfriend, Confession Bear, and More]() 7. [Лучшие фотографии 2007 - животные: rykun — LiveJournal]() 8. [UK News | Breaking news & latest updates | Daily Mail Online]() 9. [Viral – UPROXX]() 10. [Police Investigate Alleged Online Murder Confession – NBC 7 San Diego]() 11. [Naratto, Reddit user, may have confessed to murder on Reddit]() 12. [Reddit Murder Confession? Naratto Says In Confession Bear He Killed Sister's Abusive Boyfriend; Is It A Joke? | IBTimes]() 13. [Redditor uses popular meme to confess a murder]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/confession-bear Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library