“We Can Do It,” is possibly one of the most recognized memes on the web. It started as a propaganda poster in World War 2, displayed to a very small audience over a 2-week period. It then disappeared until the 1980’s, when it exploded in popularity, mistakenly referred to as Rosie the Riveter. It has since been adopted by the feminist movement for depicting feminine strength. However, it has also been widely parodied and used as hyperbole for the strength of something.
REI is a cooperatively owned company which promotes conservation-based
approaches to outdoor recreation. They market many “environmentally friendly”
products and engage in many conservationist causes. One such campaign is the
#OptOutside campaign. Pushing for social responsibility and enjoying the outdoors
simultaneously. Whether it is advocating for $15/hr minimum wages for their
employees, or closing on Black Friday, they use their advertising in a manner
that is as close to approaching ethical as is possible in capitalism. They use
the memetic form because it is reductionist and allows for the distillation of
complex ideas into simple ones for easy transmission in a very simplistic
manner.
No comments:
Post a Comment