Cats have been shared via email since the Internet's rise to prominence in the 1990s.
Harry Pointer (1822–1889) has been cited as the "progenitor of the shameless cat picture". Humans have a longstanding relationship with cats, and the animals have often been a subject of short films, including the early silent movies Boxing Cats (1894) and The Sick Kitten (1903).
2.1 Cute cat theory of digital activism. Some individual cats, such as Grumpy Cat and Lil Bub, have achieved popularity online because of their unusual appearances and funny cat videos. Some elements of research also shows that feelings of guilt when postponing tasks can be reduced by viewing cat content. Research has suggested that viewing online cat media is related to positive emotions, and that it even may work as a form of digital therapy or stress relief for some users. Some argue that there is a depth and complexity to this seemingly simple content, with a suggestion that the positive psychological effects that pets have on their owners also hold true for cat images viewed online. Although it may be considered frivolous, cat-related Internet content contributes to how people interact with media and culture. The subject has attracted the attention of various scholars and critics, who have analysed why this form of low art has reached iconic status. ThoughtCatalog has described cats as the "unofficial mascot of the Internet". Images and videos of domestic cats make up some of the most viewed content on the web, particularly image macros in the form of lolcats. 
Grumpy Cat, a pet made famous through an image macro, on stage at VidCon 2014
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