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Why does @+[251859230739:0] become 'I'm gay' on Facebook?

Facebook

By Rosa Golijan

Many Facebook users are telling their friends to copy a strange string of characters into a comment, modify it slightly, and then hit enter. If someone follows these instructions, the text he or she posted turns into "I'm gay." What's going on?

For starters, here's how those instructions typically look:

‎1. Copy this: @+[251859230739:0]
2. Paste it as a comment below.
3. Delete the "+" sign.
4. Press "Enter."

The secret to the magically changing text is in the first step.

The long number string corresponds to the ID number of a user-created Facebook page entitled "I'm gay." The "@" symbol and surrounding brackets instruct Facebook to convert the ID number into the page's title in a comment or Wall post — and the colon and the zero are supposed to prevent the text from turning into a hyperlink.

(The plus symbol is just there to keep the page ID number from being automatically converted to the page title in the instructions, too — which is why it's necessary to tell people to remove it later on.)

You can have some fun with this trick by using different number strings.

For example: I created a Facebook page entitled "Don't Panic! This is just a test." This page's ID number is 322080934472296, so I changed the instructions to list that instead.

As you can see by the screenshot above, the trick works just as well with that new number as it does with the original. (Though the comments are occasionally turned into hyperlinks to the corresponding page thanks to some sort of quirk.)

It's worth noting that any existing page ID number will work for this purpose. So no need to rush off and create a pile of junk Facebook pages — there are plenty of them already in existence.

Related stories:

Want more tech news, silly puns, or amusing links? You'll get plenty of all three if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on Twitter, subscribing to her Facebook posts, or circling her on Google+.

Browse: social-networking, facebook, social-media, featured

Jump to discussion page: 1 2

tw1sted

breaking news!

2 votes

#1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:15 PM EST

ItsAboutTime-3704531

It is... what an nice break from reality huh...

#1.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:56 PM EST

G_Reaper

I'm gay

3 votes

#2 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:17 PM EST

welcome2costcoILUVU

who cares?

7 votes

#3 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:20 PM EST

creedmoor-3805101

People have entirely too much time on their hands.

11 votes

#3.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:25 PM EST

Bart Conner

Don't these people have jobs?

4 votes

#4 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:35 PM EST

Crying shame

Most of them are probably on FB while at work :|

#4.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 3:04 PM EST

doyourhomework,America!

and your bosses pay you to find stuff like this out and write about it? we wonder why the USA is sucking so hard...

8 votes

#5 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:37 PM EST

JTM-890765

Lol. Are you at work commenting on this article while on the clock? How does a trivial article impact the USA?

2 votes

#5.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:47 PM EST

Crying shame

Well, keep in mind that the original comment is coming from a person with a picture of a guy doing something vulgar to a kielbasa as his profile picture.

1 vote

#5.2 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 3:06 PM EST

JustinUtah79

This is so offensive. I would like to see Rosa Golijan post a "news" article about a cool Facebook trick to say "I am a ni**er" when you type some numbers.

For shame.

1 vote

#6 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:53 PM EST

Daniel from LB

The sh*t would certainly hit the fan.

#6.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:47 PM EST

Alan Pugh

This would only be offensive if you considered the word "gay" to be derogatory, which it isn't.

1 vote

#6.2 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:23 PM EST

Alan Grobb

wOW, msnbc cant find something nasty to say about a republican? Amazing

1 vote

#7 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:54 PM EST

rfp330

OK - agree with the other posts about the 'uh, yeah' nature of this and, exactly what is with the 'I'm gay' aspect when it works with any FB page?. Is that supposed to be some endorsement of a juvenile prank akin to saying someone is gay or 'that's so gay'? Demeaning.

2 votes

#8 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:57 PM EST

waynejohn

This fodder belongs on a blog, not a news site. Sheesh...

7 votes

#9 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 12:59 PM EST

JTM-890765

That makes sense.

1 vote

#9.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:48 PM EST

kathy.

I'm sorry, but whoever compared "I'm gay" to "I'm a n**er" is a giant jackass. "gay" is not a slur. Those two words are not equivalent. get a life.

3 votes

#10 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:14 PM EST

Daniel from LB

I beg to differ. When you see kids killing themselves because they are taunted about being gay, it becomes a slur. The person above was making a point and you missed it.

3 votes

#10.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:45 PM EST

JTM-890765

I'm with Kathy on this one. 'I'm gay' is not a slur. I got the point I just think it is incorrect.

1 vote

#10.2 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:50 PM EST

Daniel from LB

I agree, it's not comparable at all. But tell the kid who killed himself for being called gay repeatedly at school that it is not a slur. I got the point too, and maybe Kathy did, but you'd have to grow up in that environment to know. I have been called every name in the book. I don't care anymore, but when I was called gay or fag when I was younger, it was offensive. When it is used in that context it is a slur.

2 votes

#10.3 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:16 PM EST

Alan Pugh

The gay suicides are a result of the ignorant people in this society that turned someone's sexuality into a demeaning thing, not those who are of that sexuality.

Gay is not an insult, and the key to fixing the problem lies in talking about it, not pretending it doesn't exist.

1 vote

#10.4 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:25 PM EST

Allielcea

I agree, it's all about context. When "tricking" someone into calling themselves gay to be funny, it's a slur. The term "gay" when used by mature adults who don't see a problem with it, is not a slur. But in this context it is.

2 votes

#10.5 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:26 PM EST

Crying shame

It also wouldn't hurt if people were more open minded and accepting of other lifestyles.

#10.6 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 3:13 PM EST

jennifer-3433115

This is NOT news. Be ashamed msnbc. Be ashamed.

2 votes

#11 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:16 PM EST

Kayner

Rosa, you should be fired for being retarded enough to think that this is even a worthy story, msnbc you should just pull the plug now if you consider Rosa to be a worth reporter.

Can't you find something interesting to write about.....like the boy that chewed on tin foil?

1 vote

#12 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:20 PM EST

Henry-2047580

Rosa, not to cast aspersions but I'm sure there are better ways of listing this prank rather than using the eye-catching slur currently in the headlines.

I know eyes are everything but nonsense like this demeans the impact of the slur.

2 votes

#13 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:39 PM EST

JTM-890765

Except for the fact that 'I'm gay' is not a slur and how do you 'demean the impact of the slur'.

#13.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:45 PM EST

mambo-3822030

well yes, this is a slur indeed. because "im gay" as a joke is implying that being gay is a bad thing. this is quite obvious. but ive learned not to expect very much from people in the way of brains (or otherwise)...

1 vote

#13.2 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:01 PM EST

Matt-2699266

I'm a reporter for a small local publication. I don't work for MSNBC but I'll tell you this:

Reporters don't write the headlines. Editors do.

1 vote

#13.3 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:07 PM EST

JTM-890765

So...you all think this is a stupid waste of time but read the article and commented anyway. Is it your opinion that every article posted needs to be some kind of urgent, important news? Lighten up folks and quit surfing the web at work.

2 votes

#14 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:44 PM EST

Henry-2047580

Yes we read the article. After being misled (by the headline) into thinking there was some value or meaning in the article. Having read the article we now see it lacks the worth suggested by it's headline. This article could have been titled "How to spoof your friends on Facebook" and would not have garnered the above criticism. Presenting a news article faithfully has become a dying pastime.

#14.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:55 PM EST

ahaqirri

That article is so damn gay.

1 vote

#15 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:55 PM EST

mambo-3822030

right.. and what about the offensive "im gay" part??

#16 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:56 PM EST

Julie-1468472

Why did I just read this article?

#17 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 1:59 PM EST

Matt-2699266

Wow, when did our culture get SO hateful and SO spiteful that a horde of anonymous online you choose to bash on a young reporter for writing a cute, amusing story you CHOSE to read?

The author chose (or happened to be) oblivious to the likelihood that the meme started as a way for high-school-aged people to trick each other into posting something embarrassing; we're still treating "gay" as an insult. But the authors choice to treat the key phrase, "I'm gay," as unworthy of special comment, is affirming to gay kids or at least maintains the peace as a fun story.

I see commenters saying the author of this piece should be fired. But *I* say to her, congrats on having a job in a tough industry and in a really tough economy and thanks for giving us a break from depressing news.

If you have a problem with MSNBC's coverage, talk to the organization about what it's NOT reporting that it should; that's the organization's problem and not this reporter's.

1 vote

#18 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 2:05 PM EST

Henry-2047580

What color is the sky in your world?

To think the author (or editor, as was mentioned above) placed the phrase "I'm gay" in the headline as a way to defuse the phrase and lend it an air of... What, normalcy? You don't understand the purpose of a headline, do you?

The presence of the phrase "I'm gay" in the headline gives it weight that the phrase "Don't panic! This is just a test" doesn't have. If the person responsible wanted to use a truly innocuous phrase, "Don't Panic" would have sufficed.

What they did was use "I'm gay" as a way to draw readers based on the controversial phrase.

#18.1 - Thu Nov 17, 2011 3:01 PM EST

hellagoody

This is simple hacking. Somebody will get in trouble if they use it malciously, and they will now that the genie's out of the bottle.