Meme misquotes

 

— Social media has given the average Joe or Jane an unprecedented platform for posting profound platitudes. 

Alliteration aside, many of us are enamored and inspired when we see something on Facebook or other social media platforms. Somehow we just have to share those words of wisdom because they resonate so strongly that we can’t wait to share them on our timeline. 

Or maybe we just find something that tickles our funny bone and we presume our friends will appreciate our brand of humor (personally I prefer puns).

Creators of memes (A meme, according to Merriam Webster, is “an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture.”) can easily take a photo of someone and literally put words in their mouth. Some meme abuses are more obvious than others. Some are funny, but others are downright misleading. 

Jelani Greenidge, wrote in Urban Faith about a variety of ways memes can be misleading or at worst incendiary, urging against posting them and reiterating the ideal of social media being a way to enjoy connecting with others, sharing things about their lives. Reasons for meme posting given include inciting passions for or against an ideology, political, spiritual or otherwise, such as a meme showing a crowd at a Chick-fil-A snarkily stating “You’d never see that many Christians lined up to help at a food bank or homeless shelter,” followed by the kicker “and that’s something Jesus actually said to do.”  For me, a Christian who volunteers with my wife to serve meals to my community’s needy and homeless, I would take offense. Such a post is insensitive to the fact that many such organizations that help those less fortunate were founded on biblical principles and are staffed by armies of volunteers from within the faith community. 

While I agree with Greenridge on some points, I part ways with her dismissiveness towards inspirational memes. Sure, some of the memes may seem trite, but this is 2020 — a tough year on so many fronts — and I am all for anything uplifting that can help lift someone’s spirits. 

While I’ve sworn on a stack of Bibles not to be political in my blog posts, I’ll say some of the worst offenders have been political memes. 

A meme a few years ago portrayed President Obama at a school interacting with a girl who was apparently showing him something she built, but the words superimposed on the image have the president saying “You didn’t build that,” a takeoff on controversial comments he made publicly at a 2012 campaign event in Virginia. Obama’s words, spoken to business leaders, suggested that the government had a role in facilitating their success. A website funded by the Annenberg Foundation, FactCheck.org, claims itself to be a resource to do — er — what the name suggests you do. While it’s not the only one, it’s a resource nonetheless. 

Personally I love sharing memes I find to be funny, as long as they’re not making fun at someone else’s expense. Sometimes it’s a good-natured ribbing of my own shortcomings. I try to be careful of selling myself short and posting something potentially damaging to me or someone I love. 

I won’t go so far as to suggest that you should never share memes you like. I think you’re capable of making informed decisions for yourself. There is value to an individual giving thought to the surface information presented and quietly evaluating the pro’s or con’s of sharing it. 

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Will the real Facebook Friend please stand up!

— Some of you may be familiar with “To Tell the Truth,” a TV game show where a panel of celebrities are introduced to three individuals claiming to be the same person. They question the three to figure out who is the “real deal” and who the impostors are. Then the moment of truth comes when the host calls for the real person to stand up. 

When going online, we’re faced with the same dilemma as the panelists, but there’s no wise, knowing host there to ask the real so-and-so to stand up and a wrong choice could be harmful. 

Checking notifications on Facebook, I noticed a familiar friend request. But didn’t I already “friend” this person? Did I forget? Maybe this individual deactivated his or her account, but should I make that assumption? 

Before accepting a friend request, do you check to see if this person is on your friends list? You should. You’ve probably figured out how easy it is for someone else to copy your photos and personal information. The best of us have felt violated when we saw a bogus account set up with our photo on it. It’s happened to me before. Some of us might readily figure out the faker because his or her posts are out of character with whom you know them to be. 

We might also be getting messages from our faux friend on Messenger urging us to click on a link, which is more dangerous still, considering the risk of launching malware on your computer or device. 

Facebook doesn’t have some foolproof algorithm for spotting phonies — at least not yet. 

If you haven’t done so in a while or never have, go into your privacy settings on the top right hand corner of your personal page to check on what info you’re giving out to others and think twice before posting. That clever post or share might be best shared with a few trusted friends rather than The whole of Facebook Land. 

What if I already accepted the request? 

If you accept a bogus friend request, there are a few things you should do. First of all, contact your friend via some means other than Facebook if possible, like an email, text or, if you follow them on other social media, try messaging through that platform. Report the erroneous profile to Facebook. It’s often helpful and more effective when Facebook receives multiple reports of a phony account. Also, whether or not my account was compromised, I like to change my login information every now and then. Also pay attention to notifications sent via your email. Never click on an emailed link though; go directly onto Facebook instead. 

Doing your diligence in following up on a fraud is just good sense, because the stakes are much higher for you than for someone who loses on a game show.

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'Read all about it" - online!

—  If you love reading, you don’t need to put up with shelves overflowing with books or overwhelm your coffee table with mountains of magazines. Here are just a few of many websites offering for free or nearly free more than enough reading material to indulge your inner bookworm.

Books –  Google has a searchable site for free books. There’s also Overdrive, an app for tablets and eReaders where you can check out best-selling eBooks and audiobooks from your local public library. Overdrive is free with a library card and can be accessed through participating library websites.

Catalogs – As the holidays draw near, it’s fun to look through vintage catalogs and reminisce about items from your childhood or those from your parents or grandparents’ day. Among the best websites for exploring is wishbookweb.com. There you’ll find wishbooks from famed toy seller FAO Schwarz, Spiegel, Lord and Taylor, and, of course, Sears. Musetechnical also has catalogs, including Sears and Montgomery Wards. You can’t order the merchandise, but you’ll flip over the low prices and enjoy the nostalgia of items maybe you remember asking Santa for.

Magazines  –  There’s no shortage of sites for finding vintage magazines of all kinds. Here’s a website that offers a comprehensive categorized collection of magazines for every conceivable interest. It’s part of Envision the Past, a habit-forming repository of stuff to read.

Newspapers  –  While there are many sites for viewing old newspapers, probably the most comprehensive collection can be found at the Library of Congress. Many resources are free, overall, while others come with a modest fee, including newspaperarchive.com.

Comics –  Comics Kingdom and Gocomics has about every comic strip you can think of — and then some. You can catch up on the latest popular comics, discover new comics, and also enjoy some classics like Little Orphan Annie or the Katzenjammer Kids.

Etc. – If you’re fascinated by communications technology, the mass media and entertainment world, worldradiohistory.com has an unbelievably exhaustive collection of publications that include magazines devoted to radio, television and electronics from the U.S. and all over the world. This website includes Billboard, Advertising Age and unique publications from around the world. If you’re fascinated by old Hollywood or other media history, then go to the media history project website for issues of Photoplay, Variety and more.

No mention of old publications online would be complete without mentioning archive.org and the vast, often eclectic offerings found within.

In closing, you might have discovered some websites of your own. Feel free to share them with me!

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