Edit: The Basilisk stories by David Langford also come to mind. I believe this one was the first. This one is presented in the style of an old-school Usenet FAQ from the future. The author saw the connection between his own “deadly ideation” concept and the Monty Python “Funniest Joke” skit and called it out himself:
The comp.basilisk community does not want ever again to see another posting about the hoary coincidence that Macroscope appeared in the same year and month as the first episode of the British TV program Monty Python’s Flying Circus, with its famous sketch about the World’s Funniest Joke that causes all hearers to laugh themselves to death.
I thought “Sort By Controversial” was great. And spooky.
