About
“*I Am Lonely Will Anyone Speak To Me*” is the title of a discussion thread originally created by a guest forum member on the video codec download site Moviecodec.com in 2004. The thread was once ranked the top Google search result for the query “I am lonely” and has since generated more than 43,000 responses from other users as of September 2013.
Origin
On July 14th, 2004, a guest poster using the handle “Lonely” posted a message asking anyone to talk to him about any subject to the MovieCodec.com forums.[1] In the first 24 hours, the post only gained two replies from what seemed to be spambots[9] which were later removed.
Spread
Nine days after the thread began, a guest user known as wetfeet2000 reported finding the thread by typing the phrase “I am lonely” into Google. Thanks to an optimization code added to MovieCodec.com by its creator Bjarne Ljundgren, the site quickly became the top Google search result for the phrase and drove hundreds of people to the thread, generating more than 70 pages of responses by June 2005.
That same month, blogger Andy Baio, known for coining the term “"Supercut":/memes/supercuts,” linked to the thread on his personal website, noting that Google search results were drawing lonely people together. Also in June, the thread was featured on Google Blogoscoped[10] and SearchNewz[7], leading to an article on the thread and some of its posters (shown below) in Wired[2] on June 30th.
“It is a sad thing that there are so many of us that will type ‘I am lonely’ on Google,” wrote another. “But the happy part is now we have a chance -- if anyone is sad, if anyone is really lonely, drop me a line; then maybe we won’t be so lonely anymore.”
In August 2005, the thread was discussed in a print issue of The New Yorker[8], noting there were 107 pages of replies. Days later, another article on it was posted by The Guardian.[3] The popularity of the thread led Ljundgren to launch ALonelyLife.com[11], a separate forum dedicated to connecting lonely people, in June 2006. However, people still continued to post in the original thread, which accrued 1614 pages by October 2007.[12] By 2008, the phrase “I am lonely, will anyone speak to me?” appeared as the title of a thread on The Student Room[6] forums, but did not have the same success. Since 2010, similar threads have appeared on My Anime List[13], Fairfax Underground[5], Simtropolis[14], deviantART[4], Gamers First[15], the Team Fortress 2 Community[16] and MMO Champion.[17]
Search Interest
External References
[1]MovieCodec Lounge – i am lonely will anyone speak to me
[2]Wired – Misery Loves (Cyber) Company
[3]The Guardian – Oliver Burkeman’s blog post
[4]deviantART – I am lonely will anyone speak to me
[5]Fairfax Underground – I am lonely will anyone speak to me
[6]The Student Room – i am lonely, will anyone speak to me?
[7]Search Newz – The Lonely Hearts Use Google As Well
[8]The New Yorker – Hello, Loneliness
[9]MovieCodec.com – i am lonely will anyone speak to me | Archive from 02/04/2005
[10]Google Blogoscoped – I Am Lonely
[12]How Do You See The World – I am lonely, will anyone speak to me?
[13]My Anime List – i am lonely will anyone speak to me
[14]Simtropolis – I am lonely will anyone speak to me
[15]Gamers First – I am lonely will anyone speak to me
[16]Team Fortress 2 – i am lonely will anyone speak to me
[17]MMO Champion – I am lonely will anyone speak to me