The ~Fine Line~ between Funny and Offensive Memes

Posted on by Madison Ahern

Internet memes are pictures, videos and other media that contain cultural information and circulate quickly through the Internet. The Internet allows memes to go viral and reach vast audiences. The type of cultural information portrayed through an Internet meme can vary. For example, one meme may contain pop culture information, while another meme may contain political culture information. There are specific times and places in which memes are humorous and useful. For example, the meme below takes a comedic spin on the common reactions of passengers when a baby enters the plane. This is meant to be a joke and should not be taken seriously.

However, other Internet memes may portray very controversial topics and can be very offensive. While the person creating the meme may find it humorous, the meme may hurt or offend others. For example, the tweet displayed below takes a very serious event of Donald Trump dropping a bomb on Iran and turns it into a joke. This meme is very insensitive to the deaths of Iranian individuals that have recently occurred.

Therefore, while memes can be funny, it is important to distinguish the fine line between a humorous or offensive meme. It is impossible to control who will view your Internet meme, so make sure that it is not insulting to anyone, no matter who they are. This can be a hard call sometimes, but always err on the side of caution.

One thought on “The ~Fine Line~ between Funny and Offensive Memes”

  1. Hi Madison,

    Thanks for the insightful read about the difference between a funny and offensive meme. I agree that memes can be controversial and sometimes need to be taken a bit more seriously. Since everything on the internet can be shared rapidly, making memes about sensitive content should take more thought. I think using memes and humor to shed light on important topics can be beneficial to society but when the content turns insensitive or inappropriate it can lead to misunderstanding among those consuming the content.

    Danielle

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