While minding my own business, working in the library this morning, I overheard two males talking about some girl's Facebook status. "Dude, she even likes it on the floor depending on her mood. That's AWESOME". At this point I tuned out of their conversation, but quickly pulled up my own Facebook page. I had remembered that last week one of my friends in Greece had a status similar to this over the weekend, but I just chalked it up to being a TV show clip that I was unaware of. So I proceeded to do some research. I pulled up the status updates feature of Facebook to find her update, but quickly discovered that lots of people had some rendition of this "I like it on..." quote. Here are some of the examples that my friends have used:
"I like it where you like it"
"I like it on the backseat, until I remember to bring it into the house. Then it is all about the counter"
"i like it hanging from my bed post"
"I like it on the washing machine, when I first walk in"
Intriguing, eh? Well for those of you who are unaware as I was, the "I like it..." is this year's Breast Cancer Awareness campaign. Remember last year on Facebook when females simply had a color as their status, indicating what color bra they liked most, or were wearing that day? Well, this campaign is something like that. Except, I am struggling to find out how the "I like it..." relates to Breast Cancer Awareness, when the "it" refers to a purse. But hey, apparently the campaign is spreading quickly, and I'm not one to knock the Awareness campaign, so I'll continue talking about the spread of the campaign across Facebook.
What I found most interesting in my status search, was location. Out of my friends, the first one to have this posting was one of my friends from Greece, but shortly followed by friends in Turkey, Spain, Bulgaria, Kenya, Dominican Rep., and Argentina. It wasn't until Sunday that any of my friends from America jumped on this recent fad. This surprised me. How does something so viral spread and initially skip America? I would have attributed it to time zones, but looking at the geographic location of my friends, that theory failed quickly. I also consider Breast Cancer Awareness, and most things racy, a fairly hot topic for females in America, so I doubt that it would be through lack of interest. So what gives? How was America skipped in the first 24 hours of this campaign? Or is it that my friends just hadn't jumped on board yet? Also, how is it that the females all know about this, while the guys leave ??? comments on their statuses?
I wouldn't dismiss the guys completely, I was one of those that saw my friend's status (a freshman in college in New york)two or more days ago and was baffled at her remark of "I like it on the floor" and even a little tempted to make a smug remark. I think in the case of America it isn't simply that we didn't catch on but that we automatically take status people posts in a literal way (hence maybe a foot note was needed >.<). I personally would still be wondering and possibly more confused by the increased amount of friends with status remarks such as "I like it with a fox" noting it as a reference to Dr. Seuss, before I would think breast care awareness campaign.
ReplyDeleteSo perhaps this could also be a good example of how information gets distorted as it is passed on, as people are removed from the context in which the original meaning was intended to be taken. Or just another example of how America has someone how become blind to even its own local grassroot campaigns as you suggested.
To my knowledge, none of my friends overseas have participated, but its interesting that you noticed a delay with your American friends. One thing is for sure though... Marketing 101: Sex sells. It seems the good people in charge of Breast Cancer Awareness month have taken a page out of the handbook for successful commercials, and applied it to their "I like it on the…" viral Facebook campaign. If the point is get people talking, then it is working. It has sparked inquiry and discussion on Facebook (and evidently in our school library), journalists have been writing about it, and here we are, discussing it in the blogosphere.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm not sure to what extent it is actually contributing to the cause, and whether it is translating into increased donations for research, encouraging routine mammograms and self-examination. Throughout the month, we are being flooded with "pink" everything: clothes, coolers, sunglasses, colanders, step-stools, loofahs, digital cameras, binoculars, birdfeeders, flashlights, and the list goes on. While I think its great that 10% of the sales go to Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation, I can't help but think that many brands are participating as a way to capitalize on our society's obsession with consumer brands and products. It seems the way advertising dominates our media products, has influenced how we approach other things, like philanthropy, as well.