Traveling in the US, it was quite amusing to see signs, advertisements, sales slogans, life advice, graffiti, or just ridiculous book covers we went. Most of them were so over-the-top that you could never tell if they were meant to be serious or ironic. They were often so hilarious, leaving plenty of room for interpretation, that it became a fun challenge to figure out the „right“ meaning. From a media perspective, there are always the elements: messenger, medium, and recipient. In this case, I’m pretty sure most of the messages were received completely differently than intended. But that’s exactly what made it such a fun mental game for us.
If you’re not sure whether a sign is mocking or meant to be taken seriously, always take at least a picture.
Marc Wibbels