# Operation YouTube Operation YouTube, also called YouTube Porn Day, was a coordinated raid on May 19, 2009 in which 4chan and eBaum's World users flooded YouTube with adult clips disguised under kid-friendly tags like 'Jonas Brothers' and 'Hannah Montana'. The stunt drew BBC and Guardian coverage within 24 hours and birthed the enduring catchphrase 'I'm 12 Years Old and What is This?' ## Origin According to Encyclopedia Dramatica's account, the idea was floated on eBaum's World's /p3rn/ board in May 2009 when a member asked what would happen if porn were uploaded to YouTube en masse[3]. On the night of May 19, 2009, users of eBaumsworld and 4chan's /b/ board began the coordinated push, tagging clips with the code word 'marblecake' so participants could track each other's uploads[3]. One raider told the BBC the motivation was retaliation for YouTube's copyright takedowns of music videos, quoted as 'I did it because YouTube keeps deleting music. It was part of a 4Chan raid'[1]. - **Platform:** eBaum's World / 4chan (viral spread) - **Creator:** Unknown (Anonymous) - **Date:** 2009 ## Overview Operation YouTube was a pre-planned spam raid rather than a single meme image. Participants uploaded pornographic video clips to YouTube that opened with roughly 30 seconds of innocuous footage of teen idols like Hannah Montana and the Jonas Brothers before cutting to explicit adult content, a bait-and-switch designed to slip past the site's user-flagging moderation[1]. Videos were tagged with the code word 'marblecake' so raiders could find each other's uploads, and rumors put the total in the tens of thousands over 24 hours[1]. The raid produced one lasting artifact beyond the shock value: the catchphrase 'I'm 12 Years Old and What is This?' spread from a YouTube comment left on one of the uploaded clips, which the BBC quoted on air the next day[3]. The line is still used as a reaction to disturbing or age-inappropriate material posted where a child might see it. ## How It Spread Within hours of the May 19 upload push, YouTube began stripping the 'marblecake' tag, so raiders on 4chan's /k/ board switched to decoy tags including 'swine flu,' 'twilight,' and 'jonas brothers' to keep clips discoverable[3]. eBaumsworld users muddied the response further by mass-flagging innocent videos to overwhelm YouTube's review queue[3]. Mainstream press picked up the story fast. The Independent reported that clips ran into the tens of thousands and were disguised with footage of 'favourite children's entertainers'[1], and a wire report syndicated via Free Republic added that Google spokesman Scott Rubin told Ars Technica the deleted videos were no longer viewable but thumbnails might linger for days[2]. BBC, The Guardian, PC World, CNET, and Maximum PC ran their own coverage[3]. A second wave hit on January 6, 2010, reportedly launched by 4chan in retaliation for YouTube suspending the account of eight-year-old vlogger Lukeywes1234, who fell below the site's minimum age of 13[3]. This round leaned harder on teen-idol thumbnails to bait clicks before the explicit cut[3]. ## How to Use Operation YouTube is now a historical reference rather than a template. Writers cite it as shorthand for early Anonymous-era raids, and the derivative catchphrase 'I'm 12 and what is this?' is still deployed as a reply to unexpectedly graphic or off-color posts. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Operation YouTube? A May 19, 2009 raid in which 4chan and eBaum's World users uploaded pornographic clips to YouTube disguised with kid-friendly thumbnails and tags[1]. ### Where did Operation YouTube come from? The plan was floated on eBaum's World's /p3rn/ board in May 2009 and executed by users of eBaumsworld and 4chan's /b/ board[3]. ### What does Operation YouTube mean? It refers to the coordinated 'YouTube Porn Day' spam attack against YouTube's moderation system, whose stated grievance was YouTube's copyright takedowns of music videos[1]. ### How do you use Operation YouTube? The event itself is historical, but the catchphrase it spawned, 'I'm 12 Years Old and What is This?', is still used as a reaction to unexpectedly explicit or disturbing content[3]. ### Is Operation YouTube still popular? The raid is a classic reference point for early Anonymous-era attacks and was followed by a second wave on January 6, 2010, but no comparable campaign has been reported since[3]. ## References 1. [https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/youtube-rocked-by-hackers-porn-day-1689434.html]() 2. [https://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2256743/posts]() 3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/operation-youtube]() 4. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdqSdfDcez0]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/operation-youtube Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library