Kenon Mak

Ad man. Knowledge junkie.

Hashtags, social media, and culture in general

The #hashtag is formally making its way to Facebook, but they’ve been there for much longer.  The old-timers among us—you know, them 20-somethings—may shake their heads at the functionless  hashtags on Facebook and YouTube, but let’s take a moment to appreciate the implication this has on culture. It’s interesting how the hashtag naturally found its way into our writing. It’s even more interesting when you consider that the hashtag first emerged organically on Twitter when users decided to invent their own way to categorize their tweets. We are witnessing the latest evolution of the English language. Facebook’s introduction of hashtags is another example of how media follows culture, and not the other way around.

Soft, fuzzy sign on train.

Soft, fuzzy sign on train.

Coca-Cola display at grocery store (Loblaws)

Coca-Cola display at grocery store (Loblaws)

Still thinking small.

Still thinking small.

Peanut Butter Squared. Clever!

Peanut Butter Squared. Clever!

Great copy.

Great copy.

My Single Most Profound Digital Experience

It was on YouTube. March 14, 2011. It was a Monday, but will forever ring down in history as the day the world first experienced “Friday” by Rebecca Black. The arrangement by The Poet Black was so powerful, so moving. “Kickin’ in the front seat / Sittin’ in the back seat / … Which seat can I take?” Black’s provocative, yet masterful lyricism serves as a metaphor for our current socio-economic crisis: to “kick” it with the upper-class, or simply “sit” with the poor majority? Such is the ethical dilemma that constantly plagues our moral being, and is so succinctly delivered in this song.

Time and time again, Black reaffirms that she is a true lyrical genius—a wordsmith ahead of her time. Through my years as a teenager and young adult, I have seen the rise and fall of MySpace, the omniscience of Facebook, the lonely whispers of Twitter, and the thousand-words-per-picture of Pinterest … but nothing will ever be as profound as the moment I first experienced Friday.

I found this beautiful photo and just had to add it to my collection. The traditional perspective of a westerner sees women wearing hijabs as a thing of oppression. But we’re beginning to see a radical shift in North American culture away from these stereotypes. Could a beauty product lead the movement? Picture this: Revlon is trying to market their line of mascaras with a campaign using images of traditional Muslim women. The product would communicate beauty as an extension of the personality—not what others perceive you to be—and it certainly would not be defined by cultural differences. Images like the one above aim to flip our notions of what we consider beautiful. We’ve seen the success of Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty. Perhaps the western world is ready to tackle false perspectives on Muslim beauty.

I found this beautiful photo and just had to add it to my collection.

The traditional perspective of a westerner sees women wearing hijabs as a thing of oppression. But we’re beginning to see a radical shift in North American culture away from these stereotypes. Could a beauty product lead the movement?

Picture this: Revlon is trying to market their line of mascaras with a campaign using images of traditional Muslim women. The product would communicate beauty as an extension of the personality—not what others perceive you to be—and it certainly would not be defined by cultural differences. Images like the one above aim to flip our notions of what we consider beautiful.

We’ve seen the success of Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty. Perhaps the western world is ready to tackle false perspectives on Muslim beauty.

This is a new concrete mixture that reacts uniquely to water. Developed by Solid Poetry, the concrete absorbs water to reveal designs. More important are the potential creative advertising applications possible. Imagine the sidewalk in front a clothing boutique revealing specials on umbrellas during rainy days. Or poolside splashes of water revealing the words “Caution: Ground is Wet.”

This is a new concrete mixture that reacts uniquely to water. Developed by Solid Poetry, the concrete absorbs water to reveal designs.

More important are the potential creative advertising applications possible. Imagine the sidewalk in front a clothing boutique revealing specials on umbrellas during rainy days. Or poolside splashes of water revealing the words “Caution: Ground is Wet.”

Rethink Your Position on KONY 2012

I abstained from joining in on the online movement that is KONY 2012 because of the very real dangers of bandwagon advocacy. However, today it’s been brought to my attention that a number of well-informed people on Twitter are calling bullshit on Invisible Children, the advocacy group behind the campaign (they were no doubt informed by ever-skeptical Reddit).

Among the bolder claims are that the Lord’s Resistance Army have been inactive since 2006, that Invisible Children supports a Ugandan military that is also linked to rape and looting, that the campaign aims to increase U.S. militarization in Uganda, and that 68% of donations go to operating costs such as wages and travel (a long-standing criticism against non-profit organizations).

True or not, here’s where I take issue. Everyone is very eager to show how smart they are by taking a contrarian perspective and calling those who support KONY 2012 “gullible” and “sheep,” but the truth is that bandwagoning is a reality of viral marketing. Standing against a misleading advocacy campaign is one thing, but it’s useless unless you help inform those who are underinformed.

Stopping Joseph Kony is a real cause. If you feel Invisible Children is unfit to lead a movement it is not enough to point fingers, you should be a part of finding an alternative solution.