ALS Ice Bucket Challenge
Audrey Rankin
EN101
Professor Fausti
10/6/14
ALS Helpful or Hurtful
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral on social networks, but is it too successful for its own good? ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) often referred to as “Lou Gehrigs Disease,” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord (ALS Association). It’s like Parkinson’s on super-steroids. Now, the challenge aspect was a simple dare. You had 24 hours to drench yourself in a bucket of ice water, and if you didn’t complete the dare in 24 hours you had to donate $100 to the research. To keep the cycle going you had to dare others before completing yours ( ).
It all started with a patient named Peter Frates diagnosed with ALS in Boston. Then it totally went viral within weeks from everyday locals, to professional athletes, and then to national and international celebrities. LeBron James, who was previously a Heat player in the NBA at the time accepted the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge from the deck of a yacht in Greece (Forbes). Having many celebrities including Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Justin Bieber helped raise donations more than $15 million. It took over mainly on the social network of Instagram, an online mobile photo and video social networking service that branch out to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Flickr.
I personally participated in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. I was nominated by my boyfriend to complete the challenge. I completed the challenge, but I only completed the challenge because it was socially popular, and I didn’t have a $100 dollars to donate. I didn’t know what I was supporting when I participated. When I looked up what I was supporting by not only participating, but to keep it going, I had more of an understanding of why it went so viral. It was amusing and fun to dare your friends and family to dump a bucket of ice water on their selves. Most people weren’t even hash-tagging the “ALS” part. So, many people
EN101
Professor Fausti
10/6/14
ALS Helpful or Hurtful
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went viral on social networks, but is it too successful for its own good? ALS (Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) often referred to as “Lou Gehrigs Disease,” is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord (ALS Association). It’s like Parkinson’s on super-steroids. Now, the challenge aspect was a simple dare. You had 24 hours to drench yourself in a bucket of ice water, and if you didn’t complete the dare in 24 hours you had to donate $100 to the research. To keep the cycle going you had to dare others before completing yours ( ).
It all started with a patient named Peter Frates diagnosed with ALS in Boston. Then it totally went viral within weeks from everyday locals, to professional athletes, and then to national and international celebrities. LeBron James, who was previously a Heat player in the NBA at the time accepted the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge from the deck of a yacht in Greece (Forbes). Having many celebrities including Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Justin Bieber helped raise donations more than $15 million. It took over mainly on the social network of Instagram, an online mobile photo and video social networking service that branch out to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Flickr.
I personally participated in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. I was nominated by my boyfriend to complete the challenge. I completed the challenge, but I only completed the challenge because it was socially popular, and I didn’t have a $100 dollars to donate. I didn’t know what I was supporting when I participated. When I looked up what I was supporting by not only participating, but to keep it going, I had more of an understanding of why it went so viral. It was amusing and fun to dare your friends and family to dump a bucket of ice water on their selves. Most people weren’t even hash-tagging the “ALS” part. So, many people