# Virtual Footwear Throwing Reliving the Bush Shoe Scandal Through Animated Gifs By Sandra Winn | Published 2008-12-17 | Pop Culture Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/virtual-bush-shoe References: [boingboing.net](http://www.boingboing.net/2008/12/15/iraq-shoe-tosser-guy.html) It didn’t take long for tech-savvy internet users to make animated gifs surrounding Iraqi journalist, Muntadar al-Zeidi, throwing his shoes at President Bush. Since December 15, 2008, BoingBoing has received no less than 9 submissions. Animated gifs of the President Bush shoe-throwing scandal even have Curly from the ‘Three Stooges’ taking a shot at the outgoing, lame-duck president. Here are a couple of [samples](http://www.urlesque.com/2008/12/15/the-6-best-animated-gifs-of-the-bush-shoe-throwing-incident/) for you to enjoy: I have two favorite animations. One features President Bush as Neo in the infamous bullet-dodging scene from ‘The Matrix’, except he’s dodging shoes. The other is a link for a video game called ’[Flying Babush](http://blog.zanorg.com/index.php?perm=370)‘ from a BoingBoing commenter. In it, you try and nail President Bush with flying footwear. President Bush may not be popular, but he sure is going out of his eight-year presidency with a bang—or a ‘shoe’ I should say. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 2.7/10 - Popularity: 48% | Activity: 26% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 70% men, 30% women - Primary generations: Gen Z, Millennial - Top markets: North America, Europe, Asia ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Pop Culture](https://www.trendhunter.com/popculture) > [Internet](https://www.trendhunter.com/internet) ## Key Themes ### What's Driving This Trend - **Animated Gifs:** The trend of creating animated gifs for viral content presents opportunities for companies to create unique and engaging marketing campaigns. - **Internet Memes:** The trend of creating internet memes based on real-world incidents provides a platform for brands to connect with their target audience through humor and relatability. - **Online Gaming:** The trend of developing online games centered around current events opens up opportunities for game developers to create engaging and interactive experiences for players. ### Who This Affects Most - **Marketing:** The marketing industry can leverage the trend of animated gifs to create visually appealing content and engage with their target audience in a unique way. - **Entertainment:** The entertainment industry can capitalize on the trend of internet memes by incorporating them into TV shows, movies, or online content to appeal to a younger audience. - **Gaming:** The gaming industry can explore the trend of online gaming based on real-world incidents to develop immersive and interactive gaming experiences for players. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Swicy Cowboy Boots](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/beanbq-boots.md) - [Software-Inspired Clog Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/windows-xp-crocs.md) - [Tech-Inspired Footwear](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/microsoft-crocs.md) - [Animated Footwear Campaigns](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/free-your-feet.md) - [Virtual Footwear Try-Ons](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/try-on-tech.md) - [Extravagant Dad-Inspired Shoes](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/new-balances-tech-explosion.md) - [Emoji-Style Sneakers](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/shoe-1.md) - [Video Game-Inspired Summer Footwear](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/shadow-classic-clog.md) - [Video Game Console Sneakers](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nike-air-snes.md)