However, because 4chan is ephemeral – the creation of a new comment thread always goes at the expense of another one – much of /b/’s history is now lost. Before this, however, /b/ “Random” was 4chan’s centre of gravity, a space said to have helped birth “meme culture” as we now know it (boyd, 2017) and described as “the most influential cultural force most people didn’t realize they were actually quite familiar with” (Phillips, 2018, p. By 2021, the imageboard is now mostly known for its far-right /pol/ “Politically Incorrect” board, rife with white supremacist activity and conspiracy theories. Once a cultural nexus, now a porn-ridden afterthought, 4chan/b/ was at the forefront of online culture in the 2000s. I found the archival scene of /b/ to be highly volatile, with some available text data from 2006-2008, scraps of HTML captures from 20-2012, and more consistent archiving since 2014. I therefore outline five significant /b/ archives, after which I discuss several other noteworthy ones. While some of /b/’s tumultuous past might be best forgotten, knowing what primary data exists is not only relevant for historical purposes, but also for understanding the current-day Web. Once a major cultural force, much of the /b/ “Random” board’s history is now lost. This blog post outlines data archives of 4chan/b/.
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