For my spatial writing assignment, I will be creating a MEmorial as described by Ulmer in his electronic monuments piece. My MEmorial will be an electronic representation of cases of Human Trafficking which have occurred in the Tampa Bay Area. This is where I am from and it is a huge issue that happens right in my backyard. I go wakeboarding in the port where children are shipped off in freight containers to evil men all across the world to be sold as sex workers. It is an issue which is seldom talked about in the United States as it is something that we want to think couldn’t possibly happen here. Especially considering our dark past with slavery, talking about human trafficking being a real issue in the US is difficult for people to wrap their heads around. I want to make these stories known and by using Google MyMaps I will be able to achieve the effect of making people feel the connection to the issue and bridging this gap in knowledge that human trafficking is not a local issue. I hope to achieve the same effect on others that performing leisure activities in the same location that ships are loaded with human cargo has had on me. I think that a digital medium is specially equipped to achieve this goal and will allow people in my community to see how close they live to a person whose child has been taken away by human traffickers. Depending on the availability of information, I will either use a case of a person who has been convicted of human trafficking and track his victims or I will try and find a diversity of victims whose captors have not yet been apprehended. I believe the second will be more powerful, but may have issues in determining if the victims are just missing people or have actually been trafficked.
Discussion Leader Reflection
I greatly enjoyed the discussion leader project and thought it really helped with my understanding of the Jurgenson article to be able to present it to the class. I think the most helpful part by far was formulating the discussion questions and posing them to the class. I think that learning through discussion with your peers is the best way to really gain insight into the implications of the article and get fresh perspectives on it. In the future for this project I would definitely focus on that aspect, but make sure that the presentations give a good summary of the article. I think especially with the longer articles, students are afraid to share ideas in front of the class for fear they missed some detail and will appear dumb. If the presenters give a good summary of what the key take-aways are, students will feel more free to discuss the implications of the article and it will be a more rewarding experience.
Augmented Rhetorics
In Jurgenson’s article, “Always Already Augmented,” he presents some interesting ideas on the social implications of an augmented reality mobile game. His main argument is that these types of games create different realities and experiences within the same shared physical space. This is to say that they create different social realities within the same physical reality. He argues that this is not unique to digital mediums and that “curbs without a ramp cut out” are a similar augmentation that cause a physical space to be experienced differently by different groups of people. He says that this is why Pokémon Go went from overnight sensation to hardly ever talked about so quickly. It just wasn’t as foreign to our way of thinking as people originally thought.
Another interesting proposal that he makes is that the animosity towards these groups of people walking around on their phones in shared spaces in order to play this game is derived from a feeling of being left out on the part of the people who do not play the game. They want the space to feel ‘shared’ and when other people are experiencing it differently, they get upset. A question that I have as a follow-up, and one that I presented in my discussion leader presentation is: Is it good to express this animosity and fight against these things that cause us to experience shared spaces in different ways? It is interesting because there are legitimate arguments on each side of this question. People should be able to experience their realities however they want as long as it doesn’t interfere in the realities of others, and it creates groups of people with new understanding of one-another. On the other hand, it drives wedges between us and makes it harder for us to connect as humans in a shared space. It is an interesting question and one that can only be answered through more experiences with this kind of technology but is absolutely something that should be considered as more and more of our lives become digitally augmented.
Issues in Digital Rhetoric Proposal
For my issues in digital rhetoric research paper, I have decided to combine two of the major theories we have dealt with thus far in the course and apply them to a new area in new ways we have not yet discussed. I am going to coin this new area, Iconographic Realities, and it will be an application of the Jurgenson article’s idea of different realities being created in different social and digital spaces to Gries’ idea of iconographic tracking. In order to analyze these effects, I will perform a shortened version of the iconographic tracking method, relying partly on her method and partly on my own observations, and then see if I can find any presence of separate social realities and meanings within these different applications of an icon.
The icon I have chosen to use for the purposes of this project is ‘Fornite’ with a specific focus upon the differing social meaning behind the ‘floss’ dance across different generations and age groups. In my own observations, I have seen many instances of a middle-school aged child performing this dance in different social settings often in ways that seem to convey meaning to their peers. This meaning is something that is lost on myself and my friends which is evidence of a generational gap in meaning cause by differing digital interests. I do not myself play Fornite, and therefore I am ‘left-out’ of this social group and lose the meaning of this form of communication. Due to the widespread use and popularity of this dance, it seems an excellent subject of initial study for the purposes of this new area. I theorize that much of the animosity against kids performing this dance in leu of typical communication comes from a lack of understanding of its’ meaning, similar to the hypothesis posed by Jurgenson that people are frustrated with Pokémon Go players being on their phones in public spaces more because they feel disenfranchised than anything else.
https://ufl.instructure.com/files/41704841/download?download_frd=1
Flat Earth Reflection
In the course of researching for this paper, I found it extremely encouraging how difficult it was to find sources in favor of this idea. With this falsehood permeating all levels of our society, and especially with the support of popular athletes like Kyrie Irving endorsing the idea, I was worried that the information would be extremely easy to access and people who may be vulnerable to this idea will be convinced. This, however, was not my experience. Pretty much no matter what search terms I inputted, the first ten results were all articles in opposition to flat earth theory. The fact that people trying to research the validity of this theory have to scroll past ten pages telling them: “please don’t start believing this ridiculous crap” was extremely encouraging for our society. In terms of the actual paper, I had to violate numerous rules of research and argument, not only because it was a requirement for the course, but because it is nearly impossible in practice not to violate these rules when you are defending a claim which is clearly false.
The first rule which I violated in my paper is the “Starting Point Rule.” This rule states that “No party may falsely present a premise as an accepted starting point, or deny a premise representing an accepted starting point.” I violated this rule in my opening when I stated that simply because the information in favor of the Earth being a globe comes from the government, it cannot be trusted. Clearly using the claim that an entire agent is producing only false knowledge is an issue with starting point as I doubt many people would just concede to this point from the outset.
The next rule which I violated was the “Argument Scheme Rule.” This rule states that “A standpoint may not be regarded as conclusively defended if the defense does not take place by means of an appropriate argument scheme that is correctly applied.” This was violated in almost every section of my paper, but for simplicities sake we can use the same example as above. I did not in any way argue why the government is an untrustworthy source of information and therefore it should not be taken as a valid point.
The last rule which I will discuss here that I violated was the “Validity Rule.” This rule states that “The reasoning in the argumentation must be logically valid or must be capable of being made valid by making explicit one or more unexpressed premises.” The largest violation of this rule is the argument made that centrifugal force of the earth would hurl us all off of it. Clearly there are premises in play here, such as gravitational force and atmospheric pressure, which must be ignored in order for this argument to make sense. I just did not address these concerns in any way in order to avoid questioning of my argument and that is a horrible practice.
Lowe, Charles, and Pavel Zemliansky, editors. Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. Volume 1. Parlor Press, 2010.
Rhetorical Gaming
I was particularly intrigued by our discussion of whether or not “The Stanley parable” is a metagame. First, we should define the term ‘metagame.’ Stephanie Boluk and Patrick Lemieux define the term in their book entitled metagaming when they say, “the word metagame has become a common label for games about games, games within games, games around games, and games without games.” (Boluk) Under this definition, there are three ways in which “The Stanley Parable” is a megagame.
The first is as a game about games. This game requires players to make simple choices about how to navigate an office space, and depending on the choices you make there are different rabbit holes for the player to follow. All of these rabbit holes, however, lead the player back to the original starting point and require the player to start the game over. This aspect of the game works as a satirical commentary on the illusion of choice in videogames. The gaming world is obsessed with creating realistic playable characters and making players feel as if they really are exploring some sort of foreign world. The main way developers create this feeling is by programming choices into the game which affect the outcome for the player. “The Stanley Parable” makes it abundantly clear that since all of these choices are pre-programmed, they are not really choices you are making as a player.
There is also a commentary within the game upon mundane office life and the game compares these 9-5 corporate world jobs to a mind control facility. While this is not technically a game about games, it would somewhat fall under this definition if general life is thought of as a game. The important aspect is that there is some piece of the game which is outside of just the code of the game, and those aspects qualify this as a metagame.
The last way in which “The Stanley Parable” is a metagame is under the definition of “games within games.” There is an aspect of this game which could relate to the popular speed running community we touched on in class. It is possible, since the code is all predetermined as previously discussed, to choose a specific part of the game, such as the scene where we are in the old-time barn looking place, and try to trigger that scene as quickly as possible. This would be a separate game from the overall game, but would have all the qualifications to classify as a game itself.
https://manifold.umn.edu/read/metagaming/section/84dabaa3-647e-4b18-8c8a-ba61cbf48fe3#cvi
Iconographic Tracking Report
Lee Delton Gunn V
Jason Crider
Hypermedia and Digital Rhetorics
12 February 2019
Supreme Box Logo as an Icon
Supreme is a popular, arguably the most popular, streetwear brand founded in and based out of SoHo in New York City. The brand was founded in 1994 by its creator, James Jebbia, with the inception of its flagship store on Lafayette street. Jebbia grew up in England and worked at the Duracell factory. On weekends, he would take his extra money from the week and travel to London where he would visit his favorite store. He enjoyed it because it “carries the cool stuff that everybody was wearing” in his own words (Ofiaza). This was prior to the creation of Supreme, which really started the movement of streetwear, but this store was the early model upon which Jebbia would build his brand.
He still to this day would consider himself just an owner of a skate shop, and that is how the store started out. It was staffed by young, affluent, skaters who were heavily opinionated and often a part of what would be deemed the ‘counter-culture.’ The store would play clips from old skate videos, blast music, and the employees felt that it was more of a hang-out spot for them that also happened to sell clothes. The purpose of this, apart from Jebbia’s personal enjoyment of skate culture, was to create a brand which was “less commercial” (Ofiaza). Jebbia realized that he had created a unique product in his brand, and taking a note from Gucci, he created a product that was a slightly better than the rest of the market and charged a lot more for it. His market was skaters who would wear cheap ripped jeans and Louis Vuitton hoodies. While this was a niche segment, he used it to create a lot of buzz around his brand. What really accelerated this growth, however, was the use of collaborations with other brands that would be recognizable to people within this market segment. The most notable of these collaborations in terms of brand growth was with Comme des Garçons in 2012, and the pinnacle of the brands entry into the fashion world was the collaboration with Louis Vuitton in 2017.
In terms of the brand as an icon, the most recognizable image is the Supreme box logo. It is a simple red rectangle with white lettering spelling ‘Supreme’, but this image can be recognized the world over. This image has been heavily circulated due to the brands popularity, difficulty to obtain, and counter-culture attitude. Jebbia worries about ‘overexposure’ and is concerned that too much circulation of the brand will decrease its value in the eyes of its customers and could unsettle its market position. “Supreme uses social media primarily as an exhibit space. ‘We’re not trying to overconnect ourselves,’ Jebbia says” (Sullivan). Supreme carefully manages their own social media but has relatively little control over the recirculation methods that may be employed by others. Using Gries’ iconographic tracking method, we can see that Supreme has fallen victim to the world of recirculating and remixing and may have lost some of its air of exclusivity and ‘coolness’ as a result.
For the purposes of this analysis, we will be following the methodology that Laurie Gries lays out in her article, Iconographic Tracking: A Digital Research Method for Visual Rhetoric and Circulation Studies. We will be applying this way of analyzing an image to the Supreme Box Logo to see if we can draw any conclusions about the way this icon has been circulated and whether that has any possible implications on the brand. To begin, Gries defines circulation studies as “an interdisciplinary approach to studying discourse in motion”, seeming to imply that the message an image, text, or speech carries is adaptive and can change from person to person depending on their own interpretations and preconceptions. She transitions from this idea of circulation to her methodology of iconographic tracking with the help of a theory presented by Kevin Porter. “Porter argued that an utterance’s meanings do not exist a priori; rather an utterance’s meanings are the consequences it has in the world.” She takes this idea that an image (in Porter’s case an utterance) derives its meaning from the way it is received and applies that to the digital space.
This application brings about the inception of iconographic tracking which she defines as employing “traditional qualitative and inventive digital research strategies to (a) follow the multiple transformations that an image undergoes during circulation, and (b) identify the complex consequentiality that emerges from its divergent encounters.” All of this is to say that Gries wishes to define the different ways that an image is interpreted, the different lives it takes on, in order to grasp a better understanding of the true meaning of that image in more than just one context. To do so, she tracks the ways that an image is circulated, both geographically and rhetorically, and tries to draw inferences about the different meanings the image takes on in different media and locations.
In my implementation of this method with my research of the circulation of the Supreme box logo, I started on Google Images. My first search term was ‘Supreme box logo’ with the intention of just establishing a base line and adding some images of the original icon in order to follow some threads and hopefully better narrow my search. What was lucky for me, however, is that the target audience of Supreme is all eighteen to twenty-five. This group perfectly corresponds with the group most adept on digital spaces and the circulation and remixing of that image began with just this simple search. I changed the terms as I saw fit and the direction of my research became a bit clearer, but the deviations were small. Namely I searched for ‘Supreme’ and ‘Supreme humor.’ These search terms did not yield much differentiation in result, I assume due to the level of circulation even the remixed uses of the image have received. I then continued to different search engines which gave me similar direction, but different content, affirming the popular ways in which this image is remixed. I then turned to social media where I was able to make more general conclusions about the implications of the research I had done through the search engines.
An area where the work did not go as smoothly, however, was in determining the tags to include or leave out of the study. An initial inference that I had is that a possible significance could be found in the color of the background used on the logo. The classic color is red, and I thought that remixes which changed this to yellow or green or black etc. may have correspondence to its use, but this did not turn out to be the case and the color seems to largely correspond to aesthetics or collaboration decisions, without social implication.
The two most common remixes of the classic logo are to replace the ‘Supreme’ lettering with either ‘F*ck Trump’ or ‘Harambe’. Represented here are two social issues which correspond well with the intended demographic of the brand. Most counter-culture skaters are not big fans of the current president and would be in favor of animal rights, feeling that the treatment of Harambe was an excessive use of force for the situation. Further insight into the consumers of the brand can be reflected in the two most popular corresponding terms for my ‘collaboration’ tag. They are Louis Vuitton and Bape (or A Bathing Ape). Louis Vuitton, as most people would recognize, is an extremely highly priced luxury brand. Bape, while lesser known, is a popular and beloved brand among streetwear enthusiasts which is based out of Japan. These two grant us insight into the positioning of Supreme as a luxury brand which has a focus on exclusivity and likes the fact that it is not a household name.
The next correlation, however, is where the brand has begun to run in to problems. It is between the tags ‘likely fake’ and ‘Louis Vuitton’. The positioning of the brand in this premium segment, with resale prices sometimes reaching ten times the original sale price (incredibly high to begin with), has created a market for knock-off goods. These are extremely dangerous ‘remixes’ for a brand like Supreme as they threaten what really makes the brand special. That is the ideal which Jebbia originally founded the brand upon of it being “less commercial.” If everyone can obtain these products, or at least similar enough looking ones, for a reasonable price and further if everyone knows about the brand, the model begins to fail. The brand becomes the commercial entity which it set off afraid to become and there is little that differentiates a Supreme shirt from any other Hanes white tee.
These dangers are continued in an analysis of the social media of Supreme. The verified page of the company has stuck with the original ideals and keeps mostly to product images and photographs of the products in real life scenarios as promotion. The problem though is evident in the order of pages a search for the term ‘Supreme’ on Instagram returns. The first result, in fact, is not the company page but a remix of sorts in the form of “Supreme Patty.” This is a purposefully annoying character who adorns himself in Supreme gear and then performs ridiculous stunts such as juicing limes into his eyes. The second result is the brand page, but the third result is an account which forecasts the release of new Supreme products so that consumers are able to purchase them at retail before they enter the highly volatile and often over-priced retail market. Supreme’s own exclusivity strategy has led to the rise of these accounts and has increased the ‘velocity’, as Ridolfo and DeVoss would deem it, of the spread of remixed content. This has resulted in some of the fear of the brand becoming ‘mainstream’ coming true and the fears of ‘overexposure’ that Jebbia laid out may be coming true, but from sources he cannot control.
Works Cited
“A Brief History Into Supreme’s Rise as a Fashion Superpower.” Highsnobiety, 12 Feb. 2019, https://www.highsnobiety.com/2017/08/10/supreme-history-fashion-superpower/.
“Charting the Rise of Supreme, From Cult Skate Shop to Fashion Superpower.” Vogue, https://www.vogue.com/article/history-of-supreme-skate-clothing-brand. Accessed 12 Feb. 2019.
DeVoss, Jim Ridolfo and Dànielle Nicole. “Composing for Recomposition: Rhetorical Velocity and Delivery.” 13.2, 15 Jan. 2009, http://kairos.technorhetoric.net/13.2/topoi/ridolfo_devoss/intro.html.
Gries, Laurie E. “Iconographic Tracking.” ScienceDirect, vol. 30, no. 4, Dec. 2013, pp. 332–348., doi:10.7330/9780874219784.c005.
15-Obscure-Supreme-Box-Logo-t-Shirts-Bape-01.Jpg (1500×859). https://static.highsnobiety.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/02182249/15-obscure-supreme-box-logo-t-shirts-bape-01.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
1009554_1.Jpg (1200×630). https://res.cloudinary.com/teepublic/image/private/s–cOeyw7_n–/t_Preview/b_rgb:ffffff,c_lpad,f_jpg,h_630,q_90,w_1200/v1483191015/production/designs/1009554_1.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Air-Jordan-Supreme.Jpg (2560×1440). https://www.authenticsupreme.com/wallpapers/desktop/air-jordan-supreme.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Amazon.Com: Supreme Box Logo Sticker (2 Piece). https://www.amazon.com/Supreme-Box-Logo-Sticker-piece/dp/B076GGNJJ3. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Baby Groot Supreme Phone Case for IPhone Xs Max Xr 10 X 7 8 6 Plus, Samsung S8 S8 S9 Plus S7 Edge.” Etsy, https://www.etsy.com/listing/640322137/baby-groot-supreme-phone-case-for-iphone?utm_source=OpenGraph&utm_medium=PageTools&utm_campaign=Share. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Bape Camo Supreme Wallpaper. #supreme #bape #camo #iphone #wallpaper | Wallpaper in 2019 | Pinterest | Supreme Wallpaper, Iphone Wallpaper and Wallpaper.” Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/pin/681943568550535596/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Bob’s Burgers Parody Inspired Supreme Box Logo Unisex T Shirt.” T Shirt Maker Cheap, https://www.teeshuntpedia.com/product/bobs-burgers-parody-inspired-supreme-box-logo-unisex-t-shirt/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
chrisdanforth. “The 19 Most Obscure Supreme Box Logo Tees.” Highsnobiety, 11 Feb. 2019, https://www.highsnobiety.com/2015/11/03/best-supreme-box-logo-t-shirts/.
“Covfefe Supreme Box Logo Tee” Unisex T-Shirt by Omgitsu | Redbubble. https://www.redbubble.com/people/omgitsu/works/26611342-covfefe-supreme-box-logo-tee?p=t-shirt. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Cruz, Josephine. “Supreme Is Dropping Box Logo Hoodies.” Sidewalk Hustle, 7 Dec. 2016, https://sidewalkhustle.com/supreme-is-dropping-its-iconic-box-logo-hoodies-tomorrow/.
Fan Arena Supreme Inspired T-Shirt (White). https://www.lazada.com.ph/products/fan-arena-supreme-inspiredt-shirt-white-i112596553-s115212771.html/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Flat,800×800,070,f.Jpg (800×800). https://ih0.redbubble.net/image.328295060.4962/flat,800×800,070,f.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Flat,800×800,070,f.U1.Jpg (800×800). https://ih0.redbubble.net/image.419130322.5901/flat,800×800,070,f.u1.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“‘Fuck Trump Supreme Box Logo’ Lightweight Hoodie by Ghostjet.” Redbubble, https://www.redbubble.com/people/ghostjet/works/25101605-fuck-trump-supreme-box-logo?body_color=grey_lightweight_hoodie&p=lightweight-hoodie&size=medium. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“‘Harambe Supreme Box Logo Best’ T-Shirt by Ghostjet.” Redbubble, https://www.redbubble.com/people/ghostjet/works/23016741-harambe-supreme-box-logo-best?body_color=white&p=t-shirt&size=medium&style=mens. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Japanese Supreme Box Logo – Saikō / 最高 – Version 1 by Supertwistedgaming.” TeePublic, https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/1823454-japanese-supreme-box-logo-saiko-zui-gao-version-1. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Kermit-Supreme.Jpg (1080×1920). https://www.authenticsupreme.com/wallpapers/mobile/kermit-supreme.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Listed on Depop by Anythinguwant. https://www.depop.com. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Louis Vuitton Supreme Box Logo Hooded Sweatshirt.” Urban Necessities, https://urbannecessities.com/products/louis-vuitton-supreme-box-logo-hooded-sweatshirt. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“#middlefinger #supreme #mickeymouse #mickey #mouse #wallpaperiphone #wallpaper #iphone | #byLina | Pinterest | Supreme Wallpaper, Wallpaper and Iphone Wallpaper.” Pinterest, https://www.pinterest.com/pin/795940934115778605/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
New-Fashion-Trump-Decal-Vinyl-Sticker-Car-Stickers-Font-b-Supreme-b-Font-Font-b-Box.Jpg (1001×1001). https://ae01.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1.pvpQFXXXXaKapXXq6xXFXXX3/New-Fashion-Trump-Decal-Vinyl-Sticker-car-stickers-font-b-Supreme-b-font-font-b-Box.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Ranch – Green Supreme Boxlogo by Closedeye.” TeePublic, https://www.teepublic.com/tapestry/2034249-ranch-green-supreme-boxlogo. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Su(b)Pr(i)Me by F84.” TeePublic, https://www.teepublic.com/poster-and-art/1248834-su-b-pr-i-me. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Supreme and BAPE Are Rumored to Be Collaborating.” Highsnobiety, 11 Feb. 2019, https://www.highsnobiety.com/2017/09/25/supreme-bape-collaboration/.
Supreme, Box Logo Beanie – Pink | MLTD. https://www.mltd.com/product/supreme-box-logo-beanie-pink-116321. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
SUPREME BOX LOGO CREWNECK 18FW. https://www.blackjason7.co/product/supreme-box-logo-crewneck-18fw/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Supreme Box Logo Crewneck (FW18) Black – FW18. https://stockx.com/supreme-box-logo-crewneck-fw18-black. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Supreme Box Logo Hooded Sweatshirt.” Street Sole, https://streetsole.com/products/supreme-box-logo-hooded-sweatshirt. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Supreme Box Logo Hoodie Heather Grey – FW16. https://stockx.com/supreme-box-logo-hoodie-heather-grey. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Supreme Box Logo Hoodie White Free Shipping – UrbanTees. http://www.urbantees.ru/shop/supreme-box-logo-hoodie-white-free-shipping/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
“Supreme Box Logo Sold Out in 13 Seconds in Europe.” Highsnobiety, 11 Feb. 2019, https://www.highsnobiety.com/p/supreme-box-logo-hoodie-sell-out-times-fw17/.
“Supreme Louis Vuitton Box Logo.” Poshmark, https://poshmark.com/listing/Supreme-Louis-Vuitton-Box-Logo-59954b52f09282634e01e1b0. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Supreme.Jpg (1200×1200). https://www.patchcollection.com/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/1200x/040ec09b1e35df139433887a97daa66f/s/u/supreme.jpg. Accessed 11 Feb. 2019.
Icon Analysis
For my iconographic tracking assignment, I have decided to analyze the Supreme box logo. Supreme is a popular skate/street-wear brand that releases (or drops as it is coined in the industry) clothing, skate decks, and other products which are branded with their logos. These items are initially priced as premium goods, but the resale market for this brand is what has really made it famous. It is not uncommon to see five to ten times mark-ups, making certain t-shirts with the iconic logo sell for hundreds if not thousands of dollars. The most recognizable logo of the brand is its’ red rectangle with white lettering.
This pricing strategy has allowed the brand to gain popularity extremely quickly and has come to portray being in the know in fashion as well as an air of exclusivity. This has led to two primary modes of remixing that I have experienced so far. The first is to use the red box background and replace the text inside with things like organization names or the very popular ‘Harambe’ red box logo. The second is to parody the logo as a sort of protest against the capitalist system that allows these types of mark-ups to take place.
The original intent of the logo was simply to make something recognizable that was also difficult to obtain. It is a similar theory to the principle Van Horn presents about virality. If a logo grows slowly and the quantity to ‘re-share’ this logo is limited, it will gain more attention and maintain that attention for longer. It is a model that has been imitated by now countless numbers of street-wear brands with many finding success, but spending $500 on a Hanes white t-shirt just because it has certain colors in specific places is a somewhat ridiculous idea. The Supreme logo is a polarizing icon with different interpretations person to person and I think this will make it an extremely interesting subject for this project.
Defining Digital Rhetoric
Defining digital rhetoric, for me, is not very different from defining rhetoric in general. I think the main difference between the two, as I expressed today in class, is just the accelerated (or increased ‘velocity’ as Ridolfo and DeVoss would put it) nature of communicating through a digital space. A good analogy to this is a gigantic game of telephone. Each person takes their interpretation of a concept or idea and adds to it certain aspects which are then shared with the next person. These ideas, however, are still human in origin and may be even a better reflection of a true self because judgement is less of a fear when communicating digitally.
Where I found our discussion more interesting, however, was in defining digital. The definitions of rhetoric and digital rhetoric are much the same to me but determining what is actually digital can prove to be quite difficult. Our discussions of the CD and records are of particular interest because in it we can see the progression from a non-digital form into a digital one. This same method can be applied to film and the invention of digital cameras.
The CD, I believe, is a digital medium because, as one of our classmates pointed out, it cannot be played by any other means than digital. The distinction being that a record will produce the sounds that are embedded in it when a needle is run over it and those sounds will be produced at the frequency the needle moves. There is nothing digital required to produce this process. What is interesting to me as a further question is whether records today are digital or physical. They do not need to be played through a digital means, but they are a physical reproduction of a digital recording of a physical production of sound. Does this digital ‘intermediary’ we will call it change the nature of these records? Or are they still physical because of the characteristics discussed above? These questions are nearly impossible to answer but do provoke some interesting thought.
Technoliteracy
I believe that technoliteracy can be defined as a person’s ability to interact purposefully and meaningfully with the technology around them. Taking advantage of the benefits this technology can provide, and using it to further their purpose in that interaction are the characteristics of a techno-literate person. As technology becomes more and more integrated into everything that we do, technoliteracy may become just as important (if not more so) as literacy was with the invention of written text. Already nearly every task we must accomplish involves the use of technology in some way, and eventually it will be a necessity to be versed in these skills in order to survive.
In my own experience, the area of technoliteracy which has evolved the quickest and has required the most effort on my part to keep up with has been social media. The trends of this area change by the minute and in order to keep up, one must be constantly integrated into this digital world. Being removed or more appropriately ‘disconnected’ from this space for even a small period of time leaves you far behind the curve in daily life. If you have not seen the latest meme trend or hottest play from last night’s sporting event, your ability to keep up in real life social contexts is severely hindered.
This principle extends beyond the social world even into the professional. Keeping up with hourly news reports can be the difference in an interview. If your interviewer asks a question about the latest news story he was catching up on before you walked in, and you can provide an intelligent response your chances for gaining that position are greatly increased. Being connected to the digital social space is something that is an impressive trait in all aspects of life and maintaining that link is something that takes constant effort. Every day I am looking for new outlets through which to garner this information and we are all constantly developing this type of technoliteracy.
Hypermedia and Digital Rhetorics 
