The Youngs of the Upper East Side are all abuzz. No, not about the season finale Gossip Girl. They're aTwitter about their very own real life anonymous mudslinging blogger, called MissITK (In The Know). The site, which was just shut down, was created and run by an anonymous eighth grader who, with diligent cattiness and some garbled Gossip Girl-esque verbal jumping jacks, chronicled the class of 2012's (hovercars!) "elite A-List." Students at private schools all over the moneyed, ivy-covered neighborhood have been implicated in MissITK's posts, which hiss about pathetic attempts at beauty (colored contact lenses!) and desirability (sexy dancing at a bat mitzvah! hahahahah!) Students were sorted into "A" and "B" lists, determined Kings or Queens. Television (and books, sort of), what hath you wrought??
Just like the myriad older women (and one wayward 14-year-old) who emulate the teetering, cupcake-smeared antics of Sex and the City, so too, it would seem, has a younger generation decided to take their cues from a decidedly ridiculous, over the top television show. Posts like "He fell so fast, even seventh graders won't hook up with him. Now that's GOTTA hurt. Dear Tommy, rip up those tickets to the top, because you're headed on a one-way trip to the B-list. Love, ITK," reek of Gossip Girl's influence, and it does give one pause. Yes some of us "adults" like this silly candy because we know it's silly candy, but I guess the kids might not really be seeing the same show as us. Students have blamed ruined friendships and unbearable agony on MissITK and her bitchy musings, conjuring up images of an Upper East Side resounding with wails escaping from the braced mouths of Our Future. "In the words of one of my friends, she said a little bit of herself died," keened an 8th grader at Hunter.
Though, hopefully you grow out of it. And everything gets OK. After all, the site is "immature," says a wizened 10th grader. "Gossip Girl is fiction. I think it's kind of meant to stay that way." Sage advice, old bean. [Sun]
If you're curious, Daily Intel has unearthed some links to the site, still in Google cache. The pages are gobbledygook for me, but try if you're so inclined, here and here. And, hey, wouldn't this be a great plotline for next season of GG? GossipGirl exposed! Sort of!
