Culture Jamming

Culture jamming is a form of satirical humour that pokes fun at pop culture and the people who endorse and consume it, which would be almost everyone. It is opposed by many government organizations and many companies because it infringes on copyright laws set out by that company and is a form of public activism. One example would be the picture attached, which is taken from the Abrupt website (http://www.abrupt.org/CJ/). This is a group of people who are involved in culture jamming, and have a collection of cereal boxes with this form of satirical humour.

There are said to be aims of culture jamming: 1. to make people laugh at the expense of the company or government they are mocking, 2. to encourage peoplet to take a second look at the world around them and view the ways it is changing, 3. to demonstrate the negatives of the companies or government groups they are mocking, and portray them in an unflattering light, as opposed to how the subject matter portrays themselves on a usual basis, and 4. to provoke a public interest in culture jamming, and to create a fanbase.

Culture jammers see the media as it is presented to the general public, then take that media and manipulate it. Then, they circulate this manipulation to the general populace and create a fanbase of culture jammers.

One person that I was introduced to during mass communications class was Ron English, and since that class I have shown his website (http://www.popaganda.com/) which displays the manipulations of billboards and advertisements that have been made by Ron English. He creates theses culture jams of popular advertisements and well known people, and puts them up on billboards that he "hijacks" and introduces his work into the generlal public. His work makes me think at some points about what I have been led to believe.

Culture jamming is certainly an interesting way that some people have chosen to express their ideas and opinions to the general public, and I think that it should be encouraged, regardless of its controversy.