Journal of Creative Communications

This article analyses a delimited corpus of Internet memes showcasing former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. The theoretical framework is based on studies of memes and Internet memes as phenomena inserted in the online dimension of transmission and cultural production, and principles of the General Theory of Systems. The methodological approach is based on the classification tools developed by Dawkins (1976) to describe memes that spread widely across the digital space (fidelity, fecundity and longevity) and the patterns developed by Knobel and Lankshear (2007) as the main characteristics that contribute to an Internet meme’s spreadability (humour, intertextuality and juxtaposition). These classification tools are applied aiming to select and analyse Internet memes that feature the Brazilian president. The goal of the article is to extract from both classification systems relevant tools for guiding understanding about how certain specific sets of memes connected to Dilma Rousseff became memorable and spreadable within the Brazilian media landscape. The result findings show that the categories and patterns applied to the analysis are not isolated and are not mutually exclusive. On the contrary, they are frequently juxtaposed, which denotes their integrated nature and coherent disposition, corroborating to clarify and identify how certain specific sets of memes spread within the media.

Accredited as the provenance of creative art and appreciated for its verisimilar mimetic virtues, drawing is a cathartic form of visual art. Specifically, the curative utility of drawing is anchored on its multifaceted health-enhancing qualities. Drawing is often practised either as a technique of narration, as in visual communication, or as a therapeutic exercise, as in clinical contexts. Interestingly, in the field of graphic medicine, which is a productive intersection of comics and medicine, drawing is practised both as a narrative technique as well as a mode of therapy. Analysing scenes of drawing in selected graphic medicine memoirs such as David Small’s Stitches: A Memoir (2009, New York: W.W. Norton & Co) and Katie Green’s Lighter than My Shadow (2013, London: Random House), this article investigates how these graphic medical narratives offer an insight into the healing potentials of drawing. This article uses the term ‘drawing’ in two distinct yet interrelated senses: one is the process of drawing which denotes the depiction of the artist himself/herself involved in the act of drawing, and the other is the end product of drawing such as the picture/image or painting. By elaborating the psychological benefits of drawing, the article also brings into relief how the act of drawing facilitates self-reclamation by assisting patients or traumatized individuals in resolving their chaos through creative expression.

In a competitive market, the importance of effective communication cannot be undermined. It is very important to grab the eyeballs of existing and potential customers to succeed. Advertisers have tried innovative strategies like use of celebrity endorsements, animated characters and different appeals in advertising to woo the audience and to boost sales. In the present study, the researcher has explored the comparative effectiveness of celebrity and mascots in advertising and its impact on attitude towards the advertisement, attitude towards the brand and purchase intentions of Indian consumers. Survey method was used to conduct the research. Statistical tools such as Cronbach alpha, exploratory factor analysis, bivariate correlation analysis and multiple regressions were executed to analyze the collected data. Results emphasized on the use of celebrities over mascots to generate favourable consumer action. Advertising managers can take a cue from this research and increase the efficacy of campaigns by roping in celebrities over mascots.

YouTube, a popular video-sharing platform, is being used by political parties to influence voter behavior. The present exploratory study analyses the use of YouTube as a promotional tool during the Indian Parliamentary Elections 2014—the first social media based elections in India. This study examines 92 advertisements of Indian National Congress (INC) and 55 advertisements of Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) on YouTube for the following parameters: general characteristics of each video, types of message appeal used and the dominant content of the advertisements. The findings revealed that INC emphasized more on the identity of their party while BJP stressed on their candidate. Furthermore, the YouTube advertisements were dominated by positive campaigning. The parties appealed to the voters through logic and strongly addressed various national and developmental issues. Both the parties strategically expressed the optimistic future of the country under the dynamic leadership of their respective prime ministerial candidates. The findings of the study have important implications for political parties, political marketers and lawmakers as social media has occupied a significant place among young and educated voters and acts as a stimulant to voter engagement. The article adds value to the existing studies of political advertising and communication literature by theoretically adhering to Kaid and Johnston’s (2001) concept of ‘videostyle’, integrating the functional theory of political discourse, and appending the visual culture concept to political domain.

Situated in Hong Kong’s post-colonial context of political crisis, this article attempts to investigate the unfolding of cultural activism during the Umbrella Movement occurred in 2014. This 79-day occupy protest, triggered by the government’s restriction on universal suffrage, has released protesters’ creative potentials in performing their struggles through a variety of aesthetic forms and practices. Questioning the traditional way of conceiving protest movement in terms of violent confrontations with government or instrumentalism, this article addresses the performative role of cultural activism which has been largely ignored in the study of Hong Kong protest movement. Rather, we argue that the creative practices enacted during the Umbrella Movement constitute in themselves the message that contains its own politics and grammars. These practices have constructed the meaning of the movement through naming, and have created the collective joy and identity among participants in the formation of movement solidarity. This article suggests that cultural activism is the spirit and soul of the Umbrella Movement, which has opened up a temporary yet crucial political space for democratic struggle.