viral story
Widely shared tale
A viral story is a piece of content—news article, social media post, video, or narrative—that spreads rapidly across the internet through sharing.
Like a virus replicating through hosts, a viral story passes from person to person, often reaching millions within hours: That viral story about the flight attendant turned out to be fake.
The term implies explosive, organic reach rather than paid promotion.
- trendingCurrently gaining widespread attention
- memeShared online humor
- social mediaOnline content-sharing platforms
- sharesUnits of company ownership
- share buttonInterface element for redistribution
clicks · click bait · hashtag · breaking · news cycle · hot take · contagious · spread · outbreak · buzz · sensation · broke the internet · fame · fifteen minutes of fame · retweet · forward · screenshot · headline
- mediatelevision, mass media, news, broadcasting, video
- newsnews, headlines, breaking news, headline, news alert
- news medianews agency, newspaper, documentary, article, news photo
- media trialstrial by media, media circus, trial coverage, media frenzy, court reporting
- tabloid mediasensationalism, tabloids, yellow journalism, tabloidization, gossip columns
viral storyflop
Complete commercial failure
dud · crickets · dead on arrival · tumbleweeds · background noise
viral, story, virus, viruses, virally, virality, stories, storied, history