Kirby Delauter, a county councilman in Frederick County Maryland, got angry when a local reporter mentioned him in an article. On Facebook he threatened legal action if the reporter ever again mentioned him without his permission in another article.
His buffoonery got picked up by a couple of blogs but when @Popehat started making fun, Delauter fell victim to the dreaded “Streisand Effect.”
What’s the Striesand Effect? KnowYourMeme.com explains:
Streisand Effect refers to the unintended consequence of further publicizing information by trying to have it censored. Instead of successfully removing the information from the public, it becomes even more widely available than before as a backlash against the censorship attempt.
Behold.
Via @walterolson: YOU ARE FORBIDDEN TO INVOKE THE NAME KIRBY DELAUTER. FORBIDDEN! HE HAS LAWYERS! pic.twitter.com/GUJ0hPZXnG
— IWantNothingHat (@Popehat) January 6, 2015
https://twitter.com/BruceRheinstein/status/552267423085522944
@Popehat Wow, that guy's an idiot. @walterolson
— John Scalzi (@scalzi) January 6, 2015
@scalzi @Popehat @walterolson And I bet a lot of people would never have heard of this guy if he'd not done that.
— RK Denton (@RK_Denton) January 6, 2015
@scalzi @walterolson YES, YOU JUST REFER TO HIM AS "THAT GUY"! BECAUSE THE NAME KIRBY DELAUTER IS FORBIDDEN BY THE NECRONOMICON, AND LAWYERS
— IWantNothingHat (@Popehat) January 6, 2015
@Popehat @ThisIsJoshSmith @walterolson What, is he Rumpelstiltskin?
— Sarcasmic (@sarcasmic92) January 6, 2015
https://twitter.com/czed75/status/552270523770888192
https://twitter.com/ThisIsJoshSmith/status/552271458526068737
@Popehat @walterolson He has a right not to be libeled or slandered. Anonymity is a bit much to ask of life when you're an elected official.
— Angela Beegle (aka chotii) (@chotiari) January 6, 2015
@Popehat @walterolson
。★。☆。
。☆ 。☆。★
★。＼｜／。★
Kirby Delauter!!
★。／｜＼。★
。☆。。☆ 。☆
。★。 ☆ ★— Dr. Kankokage (@kankokage) January 6, 2015
@Popehat @walterolson de lauter he complains the worse it gets.
— Chris Erb (@jcerb) January 6, 2015
Oh, well played, sir.
@Popehat @walterolson He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named
— Tim Clancy (@archstreetllc) January 6, 2015
If you would like to use Kirby Delauter's name in authorized form, requests may be made here: https://t.co/3DA2b95C4r
— IWantNothingHat (@Popehat) January 6, 2015
For instance, you could seek permission to say "Kirby Delauter is a civically illiterate blowhard, but there's no proof he molests ferrets."
— IWantNothingHat (@Popehat) January 6, 2015
@Popehat A simple google search may or may not discover links between Kirby Delauter, chainsaw juggling, and ferrets pic.twitter.com/IiLmgg9xN6
— Strawman! (@Bert_Huggins) January 6, 2015
Connie, I don't know what this Twitter is-I don't know what it does. But if you allow it to use my name you'll disappoint me. #KirbyDelauter
— IWantNothingHat (@Popehat) January 6, 2015
https://twitter.com/FirstTeamTommy/status/552270077857656832
@EdMorrissey @Popehat @walterolson Kirby Delauter, Kirby Delauter, Kirby Delauter……shall I go on FOOL? Power corrupts.
— Paul Knight (@Gaga_In_Fla) January 6, 2015
@Gaga_In_Fla @EdMorrissey @Popehat @walterolson Beetlejuice!
— FeenMom (@DWMethy) January 6, 2015
https://twitter.com/RachelLite/status/552271010859610113
We don’t expect the courts to take this too seriously.