THE INTERNATIONAL PEN

The emergence of new media and communication technologies has led to many new social dilemmas and issues regarding the use of the internet. One such issue is the even more recent emergence of memes and viral videos on the internet, and their role in contemporary popular culture. A notable piece of work on this topic comes from Limor Shiftman’s ‘An anatomy of a YouTube meme’ in the journal New Media & Society. Shifman explains the effects of memes in today’s society, and evaluates the role of YouTube plays in the emergence of these memes.

 

Shifman does well elaborating how memes propagate in our society, as he mentions their ‘spread in response to technological, cultural and social choices made by people’. He also ensures that he does not leave out the context in which the memes propagate in our society - the medium platform that is the internet. Shifman explains the traits of the internet which facilitate the spreading of memes and the turning of memes into ‘a cultural logic shared and employed by the masses’.

 

As Shifman moves on to his main point of how YouTube facilitates in the propagation of memes, he attempts to clearly define and show the difference between memetic and viral videos. His definitions may not be wholly true, as the distinctions between viral and memetic videos are gradually blurring in even more recent times.

 

However, his criticism of memes as being formulated from ‘bad’ texts does miss out the point that memes do have cultural significance, and that thought does need to be put into the creation of memes, in order to be relatable to the masses, which in turn creates a community amongst those who can relate to it. This proves that memes may not simply be silly or satirical material, but can be a sort of binding, community-building force in society.

 

Shifman’s ‘An atanomy of a YouTube meme’ is generally a good piece of work in the beginning of one’s research into the introduction of memes, the identification of memes, and their current effects in society. This work may overlook and miss out on some important aspects of the role of memes in today’s society, but as Shiftman wrote this in 2011, when memes were just about getting popular in the internet, the next three years has seen an exponential growth in the popularity of memes, of which other publications are required for a more up-to-date account of memes in today’s internet-driven society.

 

 

Reference: Shifman, L. (2011). New Media & Society. 2012 (14:2), 187-203.