Are internet memes the result of a desensitised society, or are we becoming more desensitised because of internet memes?
Memes have become an enormously powerful means of propaganda. They can be created and shared by anyone, at any time, on almost any platform. The result is a mass amount of political bias and perspective being satirically portrayed and imprinted into our brains. People love the irony and the sarcasm, they love to mock our governments and the problems they cause. As such, memes are the perfect method for presenting social and political controversies in a way which relates to the online audience and catches their attention.
In 2017, the Australian government announced they were cutting the penalty rates of workers, following the advice of the Fair Work Commission. Naturally, there was an uproar all over social media, people infuriated with yet another unfair, seemingly political decision. With intense criticism, some stated “The unfairness in Australia today is abysmal.”
The above Gif I have created is one of the many satirical responses to this issue, and there are several other political controversies that are mocked world-wide. The power of memes allows society to do this. They can express concerns and perspectives in a ridiculing way free from severe consequences. The online community has become so immune to these memes that arguably, we have become desensitised to the reality of the issue being mocked. Do we really understand the issue and how it effects us, or do we find it humorous because, LOL Remember that meme about it?!
Society should challenge themselves to consider the origin of the meme they are seeing, and what issue the satirical aspect is highlighting.
Waking up to the World 