Rebecca Black, etiquette teacher, graciously responds to @MsRebeccaBlack's contemptuous critics

​First, a bit of background, for those of you who have somehow avoided this latest pop phenomenon: Meet young Rebecca Black, an Anaheim Hills, California teenager who hit the goldmine literally overnight with her viral video "Friday."  Upon watching this video, you might be tempted to make some kind of joke about how she sounds "like a Wisconsinite with a sinus infection" or is a "tweenage trainwreck" or how her single is so awful that even a 7-year-old who eats chapstick for a living thinks it's, like, the worst, and you would be clever. So, so clever indeed. But you would also be roughly the 33rd millionth person to crack a joke about the 13-year-old overnight pop sensation's debut video, so don't sprain your wrist trying to pat yourself on the back, k?

And fielding personal attacks like this:



...with a life-affirming sweetness and sense of humor like this:



To find out more about Black's thoughts on the matter, we sent her an email and received a thoughtful reply. "Twitter is a very odd portal and one I wouldn't normally gravitate to, except for business," she explains. "And, yes. I do feel that my focus on etiquette has prepared me for this oddness. This focus helps remind me that everything we do affects others and permeates every aspect of my life. Thankfully, I can read some of the worst comments and not want to fight back. They are disturbing nonetheless. I worry for the singer who shares my name and hope she doesn't read the very negative comments."

Naturally, we had to ask her about her thoughts on the young Ms. Black's music and sudden career, too. "You Tube is another very strange portal with some positives and negatives," she says. "There is this group of haters who feed on negative comments. They tend to grow in numbers and by the amount of hatred they can churn. They are definitely on Twitter as well. They tend to hit videos of people trying to profile their talents. It is unfortunate. But, the positive is that a little girl like this can use this portal and be 'found.' This is wonderful.

"I doubt that she could be the next Grammy winner for a few years. It was difficult to know how much of her voice was real and what was manipulated. But, it doesn't matter for now. Her song is cute and appears to be written for the young crowd. So, it is good for what it is supposed to be: fun. I honestly think that she does have a chance, though, due to the attention she has received."