1. The Image Macro Election:
Legibility, Shareability,
Reproducibility
Chuck Tryon
Media in Transition Conference
April 3, 2013
2. Obama is Not Impressed
Image macros/graphic
memes as powerful
messaging tools
Obama campaign’s
dexterity at navigating
social media
(MckaylaMaroney)
YouTube supplanted as
the election-defining
medium
Relationship with Internet
memes as they have
been defined by Patrick
Davison
3. Legibility
Image macros combine images (often borrowing from
popular culture) with political commentary
Readers infer the meaning through combining
knowledge of visual cues with written message
Thus the “politics” of the film itself might matter less
than the affect associated with the moment that is
being cited
Images of Willy Wonka, Boromir, etc. equally available
to conservatives and progressives
Connected to the notions of “cleverness” that Barbara
Klinger associates with quoting movie scenes
4. Shareability
Image macros reflect not only
the sharer’s political values
but also something about their
cultural tastes
The desire to share may
be driven by political or
cultural affinity
Shareability built upon
existing networks that
facilitate one-click sharing—
Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr
(especially “influencers” like
George Takei)
Challenge of tracking how
information/ideas circulates—
sharing often takes place
within political echo chambers
5. Reproducibility
Thanks to meme generators, which allow users to
select images from a menu of “most popular” options,
making image macros has been automated
This automation makes it easy to mix-and-match
memes in order to create meta-commentaries
Allows Ryan Gosling to show up in Binders Full of
Women or “The Most Interesting Man in the World” to
appear in Eastwood parodies
Essentially this results in “one-click” political
participation/commentary
Implications of “one-click” politics is a bit more complex
6. Texts from Hillary
Organized
chronologically with
Hillary receiving text
while flying on a plane
Depicts Clinton as
imperturbable problem-
solver (rewrites 3 AM ad
from 2008 campaign)
Most images were
compiled in briefly
popular Texts from Hillary
Tumblr.
TFH challenged copyright
(photographer Diana
Walker)
8. Eastwooding
Response to Eastwood’s
RNC speech, which
seemed to contrast deeply
with Eastwood’s star
image
Illustrates the failure of
Eastwood’s attempt to
launch a successful
meme about Obama
Like other memes,
Eastwooding borrowed
from and remixed older
memes and pop culture
forms
In addition to image
macros, many people
posed with empty chairs
(“Eastwooding”)
9. Binders Full of Women
Helped to drive
perception that
Romney’s policies on
workplace and health
issues hostile to
women
Lent itself to mixing
with other pop culture
memes—including
Boromir and Ryan
Gosling (“Hey Girl”)
11. Conclusion
• Conservative circulation of
political memes including
“Smirking Biden,” a response
to 2012 VP debate
• Photoshopped images can
also spread false or
misleading ideas—the famous
R-Money photo is a fake
(although it arguably helped to
reinforce the 47% storyline
• See my reflections on the
“Image Macro Election” here:
http://www.chutry.wordherders
.net/wp/?p=3520
