The Rise of Meme Culture To Students As A Satirical Tool To Promote Socio-Political Awareness

COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
Member: Daughters of Charity- St. Louise de Marillac Educational System

E. Lopez Street, Brgy. Our Lady of Fatima, Jaro, Iloilo City
Integrated Basic Education Department
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
THE RISE OF MEME CULTURE TO STUDENTS AS A SATIRICAL TOOL TO
PROMOTE SOCIO POLITICAL AWARENESS
A Research Paper
Presented to
The Faculty of the Basic Education Department
Colegio de San Jose
Jaro, Iloilo City
In Partial Fulfilment
Of the Requirements in the Subject Research
By
Tryx V. Aguaras
Ace Kenneth B. Ortigas
Maries Anne S. Aguacito
Krezel Joy S. Forro
April 2019
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APPROVAL SHEET
This research paper, entitled “The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a Satirical
Tool to Promote Socio Political Awareness, prepared and submitted by Tryx V. Aguaras,
Ace Kenneth B. Ortigas, Maries Anne S. Aguacito, Krezel Joy S. Forro, in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the Grade 12 Senior High School, Humanities and Social Sciences,
is hereby approved.
_________________________ MS. HONEYLEN MAE B. CASABUENA
Date Research Adviser
_________________________ MS. NOEME JUTAJERO
Date Coordinator, Senior High School
Accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Grade 12 Senior High
School, Humanities and Social Sciences.
__________________________ DR. JERLYN D. PAMA
Date Principal, Senior High School

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
From the bottom of my heart, we would like to extend due thanks to the following
persons who greatly contributed to the success of this research paper.
To the panelists, Ms. Marina C. Panes, Mr. German De Los Reyes and Ms. Gerlie
Joy Pacete, for their expertise, encouragement and patience in analyzing as well as giving
corrections to the data.
To the validators, Dr. Jerlyn D. Pama and Mr. German De Los Reyes, for validating
our research questionnaire thoroughly and efficiently.
Ms. Honeylen Mae Casabuena, my research adviser, for her time, great efforts and
suggestions to improve this work in spite of her heavy schedule.
My beloved parents and friends who in one way or another heartily helped in order
to make this study possible.
And most of all to the Almighty God who gave me inspiration, light, blessings, love,
courage, strength and determination to succeed in this research despite the many
problems and difficulties.
Tryx V. Aguaras
Krezel Joy S. Forro
Researchers
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Aguaras, Tryx V., Ortigas, Ace Kenneth B., Aguacito, Maries Anne S., Forro, Krezel Joy S.
“The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a Satirical Tool to Promote Socio Political
Awareness”. Unpublished Undergraduate Research Paper, Integrated Basic
Education-Senior High School, Colegio De San Jose, E. Lopez St., Brgy. Our Lady
of Fatima, Jaro, Iloilo City, April 2019.
ABSTRACT
This qualitative-thematic analysis study aimed to determine the influence of the Rise of
Meme Culture to grade 12 senior high school (HUMSS) students of Colegio de San Jose
as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness. It further aimed to determine also
their coping mechanisms, perceptions, activities engaged and the types of media
consumed. Thirty (30) students of grade 12 senior high school (HUMSS) students served
as the respondents of the study. The instrument, questionnaires were developed and
thoroughly checked by the reearchers and research adviser were used to gather the
necessary data for the investigation wherein the participants used themes to answer the
questions, “what is meme?”, “what is meme culture?” and “can memes serve as a satirical
tool in promoting socio political awareness?”. Thematic analysis was used to process and
analyze the data. Based on the foregoing findings, the following conclusions were drawn:
on the first question “what is meme?”, the respondents’ viewed and defined meme as a
visual graphic intended to give message and entertain the audience, funny and interesting
picture which easily catches the attention of netizens, famous and trending in different
social networking sites, what we always share on different social media platforms and a
cultural transmission:
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“A meme in a form of picture is a humorous and a funny version of certain things. It is
also entertaining which can easily catch a netizen’s attention.”; on the second question
“what is meme culture?”, the respondents viewed that meme culture is a part of everyday
lives, a relationship of memes between people and netizens and a major contributor to
modern day slangs. The culture of meme is also influential and trends rapidly regarding a
certain situation: “Meme culture’s influence to the people in social media is important
because it doesn’t only entertain but is also one of the means to deliver or relay a
message.”; on the third question “can memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio
political awareness?”, respondents answered that memes are indeed interesting that can
easily attract the netizens. Also, using satire in memes through captions can relay
information wittingly as well as promote awareness in politics. Memes can also engage
netizens to participate in civic or political discussion. Students are fond of using different
social media platforms such as facebook, instagram and twitter in which memes can be
seen everywhere that is why it trends rapidly which can also mean that the dissemination
of information or message involving politics will become embracing and extensive. On the
other hand, memes cannot serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness
since it lacks on values. The use of satire to insult or ridicule someone or something is
unethical. Satirical memes may trigger the spread of fake news and political biases.
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The Rise of Meme Culture as a Satirical Tool to Promote Socio Political Awareness
Tryx V. Aguaras
Krezel Joy S. Forro
Chapter 1
Introduction to the Study
Chapter 1 is made up of five parts: (1) Background and Theoretical Frameworks
of the Study, (2) Conceptual Framework and Statement of the Problem, (3) Significance
of the Study, (4) Definition of Terms, and (5) Delimitation of the Study.
Part One, Background and Theoretical Framework of the study, present the
underlying reasons for conducting the research and the framework served as basis and
support of the study.
Part Two, Conceptual Framework and Statement of the Problem, states the general
and specific problems involved while the conceptual framework will help assess the goals
for research and develop appropriate research questions and methodology.

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Part Three, Significance of the Study, describes the stakeholders of the research
and the manner by which they may be able to benefit from the results.
Part Four, Definiton of Terms, defines conceptually and operationally the
important terms and the key variables used in the study.
Part Five, Delimitation of the Study, sets the limits of the research in terms of the
respondents, research design, variables, research instrument, and statistical tools.
Background and Theoretical Framework of the Study
Memes are “self-replicating units of culture” (Dawkins, 1999), or “multimodal
symbolic artifacts created, circulated, and transferred by countless mediated cultural
participants” (Milner, 2013). Memes are characterized by some key attributes; they evolve
through remixes and commentary and spread through homogeneous communities
(Bauckhage, 2011). Additionally, memes are rapidly created and distributed, reaching an
extended audience without being limited by geographic boundaries; they also have the
ability to focus on “seemingly unimportant – but highly shareable – sound bites” (Nasri,
2012). Lastly, memes heavily depend on intertextuality, relating not only to each other,
but to popular culture at large (Shifman, 2014). Memes emerge for a variety of topics,
ranging from commentary on news and events to personal experiences. The focus of this
project, though, is on political memes.
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The meme culture, as we speak, is flourishing in different mediums and has been
one of main contributors to modern day Filipino and English slang. Slangs like ‘doggo
speak’ and ‘petmalu’ are products of everyday sharing and producing of memes in various
parts of the world, to which the field of internet linguistics has much yet to discover and
conclude. It is an undeniable fact too that memes have been used as a tool to forward
socio political propaganda in social media networking sites. Memes are employed primarily
for entertainment purposes, yet little is known about their actual role in politics.
Much like other products of popular culture, political memes are often discarded
as devoid of any political significance, regarded as trivial artifacts whose sole purpose is
to entertain. However, acts of remix and circulation, like those taking place within meme
communities, should not be taken lightly, as they mold the cultural and political landscape
(Jenkins, Ford and Green, 2013). Memes can be seen as a “(post) modern folklore”
(Shifman, 2014), and thus offer fertile ground for academic research. The focus of this
thesis, then, is on specific category of political memes, that of satirical user-generated
memes.
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Memes can be powerful tools for understanding general socio political mindsets.
When internet users create or consume political memes, they engage in a normative
debate about how the world should [and shouldn’t] look and the best way to get there.
Internet memes therefore expand the range of participatory options in
democracies by providing new, playful and accessible ways to express political opinion.
Sharing social and political views online is in fact a highly delicate matter. In an
increasingly connected world where our personal lives are under constant scrutiny, the
decision to share political content is often accompanied by concerns around self-
presentation, privacy and surveillance. That said, because of their somewhat impersonal
and detached nature, online environments can also provide less socially threatening
contexts for expressing political views. Further, the reliance on humour and popular
culture in political memes serves as a common ground for discussing social and political
issues.
The purpose of the study is to investigate the influence of meme culture as a
satirical tool to promote socio political awareness to the senior high school (HUMSS)
students of Colegio de San Jose to describe the awareness and the perception of the
students towards memes and the socio political issues.
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Theoretical Framework of the Study
This study is anchored using the following theories: Rosa-Carillo’s Language of
Memes, Huemer’s Theory of Perception and Gricean’s Maxim of Conversation.
According to Carillo (2015), the Rosa-Carillo’s Language of Memes is understood
as a “Digital-Content” that is visual, modular and capable of expressing opinions. It is a
digital-content that travels across social media and it can be shared easily and propagate
quickly.
It thrives on remix while encouraging it as an essential expression of Participatory
Culture. It doesn’t only samples general culture as Source Material but also offers itself
up as source material of its own.
It is a visual, succinct and capable of inviting active engagement by users who
encounter the digital content that exhibits said characteristics. Furthermore, since the
specific type of engagement that The Language of Internet Memes depends on is in fact
remix, it recognized this set of conventions as the proverbial point of convergence where
remix and Internet Memes meet; it is the point of convergence that seeks to make
relevance in terms of Art and Visual Culture Education. Moreover, if The Language of
Internet Memes is approached as a creative, art-like endeavor then it provides an ideal
context to initiate explorations into it and the literacy required to actively engage online
visual culture.
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According to Rubin (2006), the Huemer’s Theory of Perception lays out an account
of perception that supports a version of direct realism. He states two main theses: that
perception is direct awareness of external reality, and that it leads to non-inferential
knowledge of that reality. The second claim requires that the first be adequately defended.
His theory hinges on the difference between direct and indirect awareness. In indirect
awareness, he states, one’s awareness is of x, but only by means of his awareness of
something else. When driving a car, for instance, one is aware of the amount of gas left
in the tank. This awareness is indirect because it is based on the driver’s awareness of
the indicator needle on the dashboard, which he or she expects to reflect the amount of
gas in the tank.
Direct awareness, by contrast, is unmediated by such a secondary awareness. In
order to be indirectly aware of something, one must first have a direct awareness of
something else. Indirect awareness is a causal and logical relationship – one is led to
reach the second awareness by a logical connection between it and the first. As such, it
transmits the authority of the direct awareness to the indirect.
According to him, there are Three Elements of Perception: a Perceptual
Experience, an Object of Perception and a Causal Relationship. First, there is a purely
internal mental state, which he calls the perceptual experience. Second, there is an object
of perception, which is external and at least roughly satisfies the content of the
experience. Third, there is a causal relationship between the two.
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The absence of any of these elements disqualifies the event in question from being
perception. The perceptual experience differs from perception as a whole in that it does
not necessarily entail an external object. Because the experience is internal, it is not
necessary that it be accompanied by an object. This is how Huemer accounts for
hallucination. A perceptual experience does occur in hallucination, but there is no external
object present. The perceptual experience still occurs because on an internal level,
hallucinations are indistinguishable from genuine perception. This implies that they share
a common mental state and that internal experiences should be recognized as separate
from external objects perception.
Huemer proceeds to subdivide the first component of perception, perceptual
experience, into three features. He claims that a perceptual experience always has
sensory qualia, which are defined as “what it is like” to have the experience. It also must
have representational content, and that content must have forcefulness – the
characteristic of seeming present and real. These components are notably similar to those
awareness. According to Huemer, all experiences are accompanied by qualia; sensory
qualia are those that correspond to perceptual experiences, as opposed to emotional or
imaginative experiences. Qualia exist over and above representational contents, and are
ineffable in that they cannot be explained to someone who has never had a comparable
experience. Someone who was born deaf, for example, cannot understand what it is like
to hear.
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This ineffability is not mystical or metaphysical, nor does it apply to common
experiences and normal perceivers – two people with unimpaired hearing can describe
sounds to each other effectively.
On Huemer’s theory, perceptual experiences also involve representational content.
He explains that “things appearing to be a certain way is not some further consequence
of your experience; things appear a certain way by virtue of your having the perceptual
experience itself”. This assertion challenges theories of perception that ascribe
appearances to an act of interpretation that takes place after the perceptual experience.
For Huemer, representational content is an essential part of the experience. Consider the
bent stick illusion: the stick is not interpreted as being bent. On the contrary, the
experience represents it as being bent and the viewer interprets this appearance as an
illusion. If interpretation determined the object’s appearance, the illusion would only
occur if the perceiver believes the stick is bent.
But no normal perceiver would argue that the stick is bent, despite the fact that it
appears to be so. The temptation to say the stick is bent is based on how the stick looks.
Hence, this appearance must be an integral part of perceptual experience and
independent from interpretation.
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According to Atlas and Levinson (1981), the Gricean’s Maxim Conversation
contains The maxim of quantity, where one tries to be as informative as one possibly can,
and gives as much information as is needed, and no more. The maxim of quality, where
one tries to be truthful, and does not give information that is false or that is not supported
by evidence.
The maxim of relation, where one tries to be relevant, and says things that are
pertinent to the discussion. The maxim of manner, when one tries to be as clear, as brief,
and as orderly as one can in what one says, and where one avoids obscurity and
ambiguity. As the maxims stand, there may be an overlap, as regards the length of what
one says, between the maxims of quantity and manner; this overlap can be explained
(partially if not entirely) by thinking of the maxim of quantity (artificial though this
approach may be) in terms of units of information. In other words, if the listener needs,
five units of information from the speaker, but gets less, or more than the expected
number, then the speaker is breaking the maxim of quantity. However, if the speaker
gives the five required units of information, but is either too curt or long-winded in
conveying them to the listener, then the maxim of manner is broken. The dividing line
however, may be rather thin or unclear, and there are times when we may say that both
the maxims of quantity and quality are broken by the same factors.
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Conceptual Framework of the Study
The review of related literature and studies, and the theoretical framework
provided the basis for the formation of the conceptual behavior of the study.
The researchers assumed that the rise of memes can serve as a satirical tool to
promote socio political awareness to the senior high school students.
Figure 1 below shows the researcher’s perception of the relationship between the
variables of the study.
Rise of Meme Culture
 Satirical Tool to Promote Socio Senior High School (HUMSS)
Political Awareness Students
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Statement of the Problem
This study aimed to determine the awareness and perception of the Senior High
School (HUMSS) students to the rise of meme culture as a satirical tool to promote socio
political awareness.
This study sought to answer the following questions:
1. What is meme?
2. What is meme culture?
3. Can memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness?
Significance of the Study
The findings of the study will benefit to the following:
Students. Findings may serve as an eye-opener to the students to know how memes
can influence their socio political awareness. It should serve as a guide for realizing and
recognizing the impact of memes which is a trend nowadays in swaying netizens.
Teachers. Results could also prove beneficial to the teachers especially the Social
Studies/Social Science teachers to make them aware of how memes can influence and
change the students’ socio political perspective.
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Their awareness would challenge them more in their role as agents of development in
moulding the young. Furthermore, such awareness would also lead them to review their
teaching styles and strategies to suit the students’ intellectual level and to improve
instruction in school to make learning effective especially those students who are ignorant
in what is happening around the government and take them for granted.
School Administrators. Results could prove beneficial to school administrators for
them to provide ongoing formations to teachers on the strategies in counselling students
about the influence and effects of memes as a satirical tool to promote socio political
awareness.
Parents. Findings would be of great help to the parents for them to realize that they
have a great role and task in shaping the intellect and total personality of their own
children in discussing matters about memes circulating in social networking sites as a
satirical tool to promote socio political awareness. This is not just the job of the school
administrators and the teachers alone but a joint effort for both school and home.
Future Researchers. Findings would be of great help to the future researchers in order
for them to have an idea on the influence of meme culture to students as a satirical tool
to promote socio political awareness and would help them on their future studies. This
study will also serve as their guide or basis in the research process.
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Definition of Terms
Meme Culture. It is the unit of cultural evolution or transmission of memes. (Dawkins,
1996).
In this study, it refers to the evolution of memes and how it is transmitted to

different cultures.
Satirical Tool. An instrument to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an
individual or a society, by using humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule. (Colebrook, 2004).
In this study, it refers on how memes can serve as an instrument to promote socio
political awareness in a witty or a sarcastic manner to expose or discredit vice or folly.
Socio Political Awareness. Being watchful of issues in the community, country, and
the world relating to, or involving a combination of social and political factors. (Zalliro,
2013).
In this study, it refers to the consciousness of the students about what is
happening in the socio political culture of the country.
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Scope and Delimitation of the Study
This study will be conducted randomly among the senior high school students of
Colegio de San Jose, Jaro, Iloilo City. The respondents of the study will be obtained
randomly from one senior high school strand (HUMSS) with 30 participants enrolled in
the first semester of school year 2018-2019.
This descriptive research is limited only to the influence of memes as a satirical
tool to promote socio political awareness, the coping mechanisms of students, how they
deal with it and how can memes change the students’ socio political perspective. Thus,
the result of the study is applicable only to the subject of this study.
The duly validated research-made questionnaire and an interview will assist in the
dissemination of information to the students in relation to the study on the rise of meme
culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness.
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Chapter 2
Review of Related Literature
For the better understanding of the nature of the study, literature related to the
present study is reviewed in this chapter. It consists of four parts:
Part One, The Rise of Meme Culture, discusses the advancement of meme culture,
how it was used in the internet, media, communication process and the way how it was
transmitted to different cultures.
Part Two, Meme as a Satirical Tool to Socio Political Awareness, talks about how
memes was used as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness, the
effectiveness of satire and humor in engaging people in a political discussion or
participation, and how it is powerful in the age of social media.
Part Three, Related Studies, provides previous studies connected to the research.
Part Four, Summary of the Review of the Related Literature.

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The Rise of Meme Culture
Richard Dawkins introduced the term “meme” which is defined by “an idea,
behavior, or style that spreads from person to person within a culture” (Merriam-Webster,
2017). By nature, the circulation of memes depends on the topic displayed. From political
scandals to an unflattering photo of a celebrity, meme creators juxtapose and remix “them
to create new layers of meaning” (Huntington, 2016). Due to the prevalence of politically-
themed memes across multiple social media platforms, the images are becoming an
intriguing foundation for rhetorical analysis.
Limor Shifman’s argues that memes “encapsulate some of the most fundamental
aspects of the Internet…and of the participatory Web 2.0 culture…” in her book, “Memes
in Digital Culture” (Shifman, 2013). One particular meme, borne from the Occupy Wall
Street Movement, was the Pepper Spray Cop, an image from a sit-in protest at the
University of California, Davis. The nonchalance of the police officer as he pepper sprays
the students as he would “spraying a garden for weeds” illustrates the level of absurdity
that occurs not only in the United States, but on college campuses. Accordingly, the act
of meme-ing is to take a hot-button topic and reduce it to a humorous image. Perhaps
this phenomenon of reactions is the public’s method of coping with the disturbing realities
faced outside of the Internet.
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Technocultural Transmission. The “Internet meme” is used to refer to the
dispersion of items, such as jokes, videos, images, and websites from person to person
through the Internet (Shifman, 2014). Internet memes have been more and more popular
with the rise of Internet culture as more people engage with and participate in social
media to express themselves (Brown, 2014). People can just click “share”, or “like” on the
social networks, blogs, meme-documentary websites and other forums to post and
reference Internet memes. Like traditional memes, Internet memes have also been
described as a cultural process (Brown, 2014). Alice Marwick (2013) that is, an Internet
meme is a piece of culture and it gains influence through its transmission online. Limor
Shifman (2013) agreed with this view and also mentioned that even though cultural
information carried by Internet memes passes along via person to person, it gradually
ascends to a shared social phenomenon. As a result, scholars (Huntington, 2013; Knobel
& Lankshear, 2007; Mina, 2012) including Shifman, concluded that Internet memes can
be examined as a microlevel discourse to analyze and understand the macro-level
discourses. In other words, Internet memes spread on a micro level, but their influence is
on macro level. They shape people’s beliefs, behavior, and collective actions (Shifman,
2013).
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In Sharma’s (2013) article “Black Twitter? Racial hashtags, networks and contagion”, the
author introduced the concept of “technocultural assemblages” that include software
platform, algorithms, digital networks and affects. Instead of focusing on racial
representation and significance of online identities, the article aimed at analyzing how
race and identities are materialized within technoculture. The meme-
generating/documentary websites such as Know Your Meme, 4chan, and Reddit, have
been described as the “viral incubator” (p. 60), because they track and create memes,
some of which are racially provocative and lead to intense discussion.
The Internet and public sphere. Internet memes are discursive practices that
representing participants’ beliefs and interactions via a public sphere provided by the
Internet. People are active nowadays online by creating, sharing, liking, recreating, and
retransmitting those messages. Yet users are not simply attracted by the advanced digital
devices and the funny form that carries their opinions; the notion of exchanging ideas
through the public sphere arose in the 1960s. Revealing the development of public sphere
is helpful for gaining a better awareness of how power relations are being demonstrated
through public activities. Decades ago, Jürgen Habermas (1994) noticed the role of a
public sphere in people’s daily conversation and social practices. He defined the public
sphere as “made up of private people gathered together as a public and articulating the
needs of society with the state” (p. 176).
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He theorized the public space where private people can participate in discussion and free
from the restrictions set by dominated groups, and where private people are able to
determine the common interest on this stage (Ward, 1997). Physical spaces, such as pubs,
salons, and cafes, as well as print media, were considered to be the public spheres where
people read, wrote, shared opinions and discussed social issues in Europe during the 18th
and 19th centuries. Publicly exchanged opinions guaranteed democracy within the society.
Also, it encouraged public civic participation (Terranova, 2004). However, the public
spaces also differentiated people by their class, status, gender, and race. Women,
laborers, the illiterate, and other groups of people were excluded (Warnick, 2007). Around
the late 19th century, such local channels gradually lost their appeal with the growth of
private media and the rise of the modern bureaucratic state (Chadwick, 2006). In the late
19th century, cameras, video recorders, television, and phones became the new public
sphere. Nevertheless, media content was designed to stimulate mass consumption. Social
events were created and manipulated by one means or another to attract audience
attention (Warnick, 2007). Later in the 20th century, the popularity of the Internet began
to take away the leading role from the traditional social spaces and became the new public
platform (Vlavo, 2012). As a result, the Internet enhances the diffusion of memes and
also turns the spread of memes into a highly visible practice (Shifman, 2013). Mou, Atkin,
and Fu (2011) also concluded that compared to the previous media, the Internet owns
unprecedented advantages of “the enormous information storage and dissemination
capacity” (p. 342).
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Chadwick (2006) considered that the Internet may have the potential to increase political
participation. On the one side, the easy access to the technology nurtures the
development of this kind of public sphere in which the public will be more independent
from the propaganda set by the mainstream media or the government (Vlavo, 2012). On
the other side, the Internet being a relatively spontaneous, flexible and autonomous
medium (Chadwick, 2006), will provide the public a less restricted and more equal
environment, compared to the previous public spheres. Therefore, people who became
silent with the decay of the old public spheres could be active again. Terranova (2004)
indicated that the Internet could be an effective political sphere in which the public owns
the tools for communicating that allows them to challenge the dictatorship of media.
Likewise, Vlavo (2012) considered that the Internet could be a platform for response to
inequality and socio-political hegemony. Previously marginalized or oppressed voices are
brought into this public area, in which active participations are encouraged and shared
citizen responsibility are built (Dietel-McLaughlin, 2009). Then, the public sphere formed
by private individuals can be employed to influence social democratic development (Ward,
1997).
Participatory media. The requirements of creating and understanding a macro-
image meme are minimal (Vickery, 2014). Websites such as Meme Generator and Quick
Meme welcome public participation in creating memes without acquiring sophisticated
technological or design skills.
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Low requirements for inclusion are part of a participatory culture (Jenkins, 2009).
Participation makes Internet memes meaningful collectively (Brown, 2014). Internet
memes are recognizable because of their shared meaning in a communal setting.
Therefore, the self-perspective cannot develop without being influenced by other people’s
points of view. Rather than to exclude, Internet memes as a participatory action include
diverse identities that make their voices heard (Milner, 2013). Drawing from collective
memories, such as histories, contributes to the creation and understanding of the Internet
memes. Therefore, the power of community potentially can be increased along with
participation in the process (Hristova, 2013). However, Hristova also pointed out that the
influence of Internet memes is challenged by their self-replicating quality because Internet
memes rely on remixing and modifying the original idea, image, and language hence
becoming irrelevant after a short time. Participatory culture allows online users to be vocal,
challenge fixed impressions, transgress boundaries, and replace space. For instance, in
the “Pepper Spray Cop” memes, the collective experience and memories about brutal
police have been reviewed and challenged (Hristova, 2013). Moreover, Spitzberg (2014)
utilized the spiral of silence effect to illustrate that the cooperative memes assistant
minority groups give voice to their memes in the mainstream discourse. Nevertheless,
stereotypical assumptions and hegemonic culture also make Internet memes (Vickery,
2014). For example, in the “High Expectation Asian Father” meme series, racial minority
and mainstream stereotypes toward Asians have been depicted (Nakamura, 2002). Race
has been emphasized in the content. In addition, by using nonstandard English, Asian
Americans were again portrayed as social others.
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Internet memes in intercultural communication
Humor, racial identity and communication. Jokes are commonly featured in
Internet memes. Humorous texts and images can deliver serious social issues (Shifman &
Thelwall, 2009). “Advice animals”, for instance, are a popular image-based, online user-
created meme format. The meme series include a funny image of an animal and with text
offering advice and/or making a joke. Vickery (2014) analyzed one such example that is
titled “Confession Bear”, in which a sad looking grizzly bear confesses something awkward,
silly, or shameful. The “Confession Bear” memes were first circulated through the online
website Reddit and were intended to be funny. However, users started creating memes
that shared serious topics such as race, rape, and domestic abuse as the confession.
Those memes evoked in-depth conversations on Reddit. Similarly, Ryan Milner (2013)
introduced the “logic of lulz”. “Lulz” derived from “lol” or “laughing out loud.” Luls “labels
on participatory collectives a detached and dissociated amusement at others’ distress” (p.
66). It often works with race and gender. The author found that race and gender
representations in those Internet image-based memes were dominated by stereotypes.
However, the “logic of lulz” relying on irony and critique facilitated dominant and counter
discourse. To further explain this idea, Milner demonstrated the example of how KKK joke
websites employ stereotypical and racist humor to embrace the oppressive ideology.
Nakamura (2002) studied whiteness in Internet memes. Whiteness has been defined as
invisible.
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She deemed that whiteness is taken as a default option in such memes, and the white
people are assumed as the readers. For example, in the “Ordinary Muslim Man” meme
series, even though the turn of phrase which intends to undermine stereotypes toward
Muslim men, the invisible whiteness is powerful by emphasizing “ordinary.” Humorous
Internet memes can be utilized by users to challenge inequality and hegemonic culture
(Vickery, 2014). However, the past is manifested in visual culture and everyday practice
(Hristova, 2013). It lies in every iconic images, texts, and jokes, shared among the public.
Internet memes as intercultural discourse. Shifman (2014) defined Internet
memes from three perspectives. First, a set of Internet memes share common features of
form, content and/or attitude. Secondly, they were created based on the “awareness” of
each other (p. 41). This means that memes in the set shared same recognizable
components. Thirdly, via the platform of the Internet, they were uploaded, circulated,
imitated, and/or transformed by users. Thus, diverse voices and perspectives are carried
by distinct memetic variants. Shifman’s definition provided a general guide for analysis
Internet memes as socio-culturally constructed discourses. Yang (2012) also concluded
that, in a virtual environment, time and physical space play less and less important roles.
Internet users apply different strategies to intercultural discourses to negotiate their
cultural identities, in which there exist conflicts between anonymity and honesty, visibility
and invisibility, and temporality and permanency. Like traditional discourses, such as
broadcast programs, movies and printed publications, Internet memes still largely rely on
race and racial issues for humor.
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They disperse among people and reflect and shape general social mindsets (Shifman,
2014). The wide transmission of Internet memes across national boundaries is not only
attributed to advanced technology but also by online users’ decisions and actions. Like
other aspects of popular culture, memes are designed and created, no matter subtly or
obviously, from the base of cultural values and communicative preferences of their
inventors (Cheong, Martin & Macfadyen, 2012). Their design and implementation are all
shaped by culturally variable values, practices, norms and beliefs (p. xiii). For instance, in
the popular Internet meme “Successful Black Man,” a young black man wearing a suit is
in the middle of the image, accompanied by two captions. The top line always is a
stereotypically negative comment about black people. The bottom one reverses it to show
the stereotype being wrong. This meme series reinforce attitudes that are already held by
viewers and at the same time it provides a counterexample to possible racist attitudes.
Racial/cultural identities are thus negotiated within the process. However, instead of
persuading people to challenge the stereotypical impressions about Asian/Asian
Americans, memes like “High Expectation Asian Father” encourage users to make up lines
to emphasize them (Wilson, Gutiérrez & Chao, 2013). Such lines originate from the
stereotypes of Asian strict parenting styles and Asian/Asian Americans as model minority.
Contemporary U.S. media culture performs race in controversial, ambivalent, and
perplexing ways (Lacy & Ono, 2011). Those disturbing racialized Internet memes serve
as evidence that race and racism are still alive and well in the so-called “post-racial” era
in the United States.
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Via memes, a form of digital public discourse, Internet users design images and texts to
express their anxieties, anger, fears, and dissatisfaction brought by the intercultural
communication. Those memes reflect their knowledge and perspective on race and culture
(p. 2).
Meme as a Satirical Tool to Socio Political Awareness
Humor and Satire as a tool for discourse. The main components of a meme are
humor and satire. Since the advent of media, humor was used as an instrument to
comment and criticize against oppression. The history of humor being used as a tool dates
back to the stories and pictures in the anti-Nazi comics. Since then, till the recent
movements, humor has been used as a tool for criticizing the oppression with humor.
(Hajizada, 2010) There have been records where humor as well as satire has been used
as a form of political commentary. It has been termed as a subculture and used widely in
different political campaigns. A research by George (2012) mentions that this medium has
been used for political engagements too.
Political Humor. Political humor has been an important part of political discourse in a
society. It attracts not only the people who are active in politics but also helps in forming
opinions for people who are not active participants in political issues and discussions.
Various researchers’ mention that exposure to political humor increases political attention
and helps in learning about political issues especially in the digital natives.
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This also leads to an increase in the feeling of political efficacy and interest. Also political
humor is a mix of humor and user generated content. It thus includes the opinion of the
masses and hence has a deeper impact on the audience. (Hajizada, 2010). The concept
of Internet memes has become popular these days. There have been many websites like
knowyourmeme.com, memedump.com, or memebase.com who act as an archival for the
memes. Many professions like public relations and advertising have started using memes
creatively to communicate their message and attract audiences. The information that is
passed through these memes is for creating a buzz and is for publicity purpose rather
than for just giving information. Memes that are used in political campaigning are used
for creating public opinion and as a tool for propaganda (Bauckhage, 2011).
Satire as a Tool for Civic Participation. Satire as it relates to civic participation is at
the core of this research and is a key theme in much of the literature. Whether satire is
used by millennials as a tool to engage their peers or to fill a void they feel has been left
by the corporatisation of mainstream media are primary questions this research seeks to
address. The nature of civic commitment by different generations is thoroughly explored
in Russell Dalton’s book, “The Good Citizen” (2009). This book studies older generations’,
or ‘baby boomer’, conceptions of duty-bound citizenship, as compared to the more
engaged citizenship of the millennial cohort, to support a wider argument which negates
pessimism around the contributions of American youth (Dalton, 2009, p.2).
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Dalton argues that social, political and technological change has in fact enhanced
democracy, despite what you might believe if your measure was voter participation alone.
Millennials, according to Dalton, relate to government and society in different ways to that
of their parents and grandparents but this does not mean that “the foundations of
citizenship and democracy are crumbling” (Dalton, 2009, p.2). Looking to the context with
Dalton’s thesis in mind, it can be argued that despite persistently low voter turnout among
young people, millennials are active in their communities, but that activity is more likely
to manifest online, or virtually, rather than face-to-face. This shift of preferences and
political communication is being leveraged by politicians, with campaign strategy moving
away from town hall meetings and road-side meet and greets to a more professionalised
politics, where politicians seek the broadest possible audience with online tools. For
example, Facebook live chat sessions now often replace electorate clinics and public
meetings. It also suggested social channels were likely to play a key role in future
campaigns, with a majority of elected members having at least one social media account.
The Library found that for many, the internet was a more important source of information
than television, newspapers or radio ( p.1). This research draws on a number of secondary
sources including New York Times columnist, Anand Giridharadas, who has written
extensively on the impact of social media as an enabler for “Athenian-style direct
democracy” (Giridharadas in Busby & Ballamy, 2011, p.8).
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It also draws on learnings from the 2008 presidential campaign of former United States
President Barack Obama, which used social media including Facebook, Twitter, blogs and
wikis to modernise campaigning and communication with voters with a digital-first model
that is still being replicated around the world close to ten years later. The paper argues
that citizens no longer want a “broadcast-only” relationship with their MPs but a two-way,
participatory conversation and connection (Busby & Ballamy 2011, p.11). Themes of
participation and engagement are closely linked throughout the academic literature.
Colletta (2009) argues that the very existence of satire depends on engagement,
explaining that if the satirist and the viewer don't think the object or topics of their attack
are open to change, then the medium would revert to simple criticism. Colletta (2009)
positions satire as a “hopeful genre” (p.860), but also asks questions about its effect on
political participation. For example, she argues that a primary product of satire is shame
and questions how useful shame can be in eliciting political participation. This is
particularly relevant when considered in relation to the peer-to-peer communication that
is understood to resonate with millennials (Edelman, 2017). Shame, especially if it comes
from peers, is a powerful and disempowering tool. Looking to satire and civic participation,
Andrew Dean’s chapter, “Speech and Silence in the Public Sphere”, is again instructive.
Dean, a millennial himself, looks to the near-current political environment and attempts
to explain why political participation, particularly among young people, is waning. Dean
argues that changing patterns in democratic participation are “a matter of structure and
design” (Dean, 2016, p.31).
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He speaks directly to the underfunding of public broadcasting, the Government-sponsored
stripping back of union power and capacity and specific examples of legislation that he
claims have curbed the ability for citizens to “think, speak and act together in the public
sphere” (Dean, 2016, p.32). Dean’s central point is not that people no longer wish to
participate in public and political debate, but that those institutions that traditionally
organised and facilitated dissent have been reformed so as not to allow it. Dean’s chapter
uses the public criticism of novelist Eleanor Catton in 2015, where she was attacked for
criticising the Government’s lack of support for the arts, to demonstrate the performance
of neoliberal logic as it impacts participation. He frames the attacks on Catton, which
essentially painted her publicly as a traitor to her country, as a response, knowingly or
not, to a neoliberal value system of free market individualism and economic rationality
which has had the effect of “empowering some and silencing others” (Dean in Godfrey,
2016, p.31). The report details some of the environmental factors that influence voter
turnout, including barriers for overseas voters, blind and visually impaired voters, and the
changing role of advance voting. These issues give useful context to the broader themes
identified in other academic literature about the changing norms of citizenship and voters’
interaction with the political public sphere. The report also details some of the issues
facing the Commission and influencing the voter experience. For example, the rise of
“selfies” taken at polling locations in the 2014 General Election raised concerns about
potential non-compliance with the Electoral Act and the implications for protecting the
secrecy of the vote.
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The regulation of social media use around elections is of particular relevance to this field
of enquiry, where changing patterns of engagement are often realised online.
Political Efficacy. Hoffman and Young (2011) look at the effects viewing political satire
has on knowledge and participation, social capital and communication, and how citizens
use the internet to become engaged with politics (“Lindsay”, n.d.). Their article, “Satire,
Punch Lines, and the Nightly News: Untangling Media Effects on Political Participation”,
discusses the psychology and influence of political entertainment. While both authors take
an American-centric approach to examining the effects of different types of media use on
political participation, the tool of political efficacy to measure media effects is one that
could be used in a comparative context. The authors propose that political efficacy,
defined as, “the belief in one's own competency and the feeling that political and social
change is possible” (Campbell, Gurin, & Miller in Hoffman & Young, 2011, p.161), is an
important mechanism to measure media effects such as political participation. They argue
that a person’s judgement of their own political efficacy can incentivise political
participation. Their article aims to establish whether or not late night comedy, satirical
programming and traditional television news has similar or divergent effects on political
participation. To set their study apart from other literature into political and media effects,
Hoffman and Young draw a line between late-night comedy, such as The Late Show and
The Tonight Show and political satire such as The Daily Show or The Colbert Report,
suggesting that each has unique effects on political participation.
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Late-night television is said to focus on punchline jokes and caricatures of public figures,
while political satire such as The Daily Show asks viewers to evaluate issues. The authors
found this distinction impacts on political efficacy and, in turn, participation. Hoffman and
Young differentiate each show’s viewership (arguing that younger viewers were more
likely to watch satirical programming, while older viewers preferred late-night
programming), before constructing a study to measure the implications of viewing each
type of programming. Like other literature looking at the effects of political satire, a
generational divide was deemed important and relevant to the study. The theoretical
framework for Hoffman and Young’s research (2011) relied on a mediation model,
whereby media use predicts efficacy, which predicts participation. The evaluation uses a
bootstrapping technique of mediation analysis, controlling for age, ideology and political
interest, and found that there was a positive correlation between viewing traditional and
satirical news and political participation which was not shared by those who only viewed
late night comedy. The authors extrapolate that the cognitive effort required by satirical
programming (which is not required for the punch line comedy of late-night shows)
engages viewers in a unique way, thereby increasing the salience of their political efficacy.
This research is in keeping with other literature into the effects of political satire and
participation, in that it demonstrated there are positive effects between viewing political
entertainment and increasing participation. For this project the learning from this article
is in the use of political efficacy as a measure of media effects, rather than the method or
specific findings.
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Satire and Power. When thinking about the action millennials taking to engage with
politics, whether through satire or other means, it is useful to situate their effort within
the context of the international experience of similar cohorts. In her article, “‘Down with
some things!’ The Politics of Humour and Humour as Politics in Turkey’s Gezi protests”,
Dagtas (2016) explores “the relationship between humour and power in contemporary
activist practices” (p.12). Dagtas study found a physical location for a discussion of
humour, satire and politics, where protesters from a broad range of backgrounds came
together in opposition to their neoliberal, authoritarian government. Despite a lack of
coherent political agenda, this group used humour to destabilise political targets and unite
people in opposition to a common enemy. Dagtas cites her past ethnographic study of
secular politics as a building block for her analysis of how humour is an entry point to
understanding and explaining cultural difference. She also makes use of theories of
humour such as superiority theory, which is the idea that people “acquire a sense and
feeling of superiority by laughing at the misfortune of others” (Dagtas, 2016, p.13). This
approach grounds her arguments in broader conceptions of power allowing her to speak
to the possibilities and limitations of humour as a political tool. To explore the way Dagtas’
speaks to identified themes in the literature, including satire’s rejection of rationality and
relationship with participation, it is worth explaining the title this article references. During
the initial period of the Gezi uprising, a protester’s graffiti reading; ‘kahrolsun bagzi seyler!’
which in English translates to; ‘down with some things!’ became a slogan for the
movement thanks to its use of humour to articulate both rebellion and confusion with the
status quo (Dagtas, 2016, p.29).
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By misspelling the work for ‘some’ the slogan draws attention to public dissatisfaction
with the system, while at the same time poking fun at the inability of language and
rationality to aptly describe their dissent. In this example, and many others discussed by
Dagtas, humour and satire give activism the focus and reach it needs to have impact and
increase participation. Her article also looks to the role young people play in propagating
messages and how humour is a select form of dissent against authoritarian regimes.
Dagtas’ insight that, for many, not taking things seriously is a way to address feelings of
guilt and uselessness in the face of seemingly insurmountable power structures (Dagtas,
2016, p.5). Dagtas’ focus on youth and the way they employ humour as a weapon or
collective “coping strategy” (Dagtas, 2016, p.15) is relevant to research into millennials
and political participation in the context. Like other authors in the field Dagtas is careful
to define satire as both “emancipatory and disciplinary” (Dagtas, 2016, p.13), with its role
ultimately being to “demarcate difference” (Carty and Musharbash, 2008 in Dagtas, 2013,
p.13). The bond satire creates between the joker and the audience is not defined by
simply understanding the humour, but rather “the distance they establish, through the
joke, between themselves and the object of ridicule,” (Dagtas, 2016, p.26). This definition,
like others in the literature, is illustrative in that it speaks to satire’s potential for
relationship building. The structure of Dagtas’ article is particularly useful to this project.
By looking at the history of political satire, the reader is opened up to the worldview which
is useful in that it reminds the reader that satire is understood in context.
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By citing many examples and including pictures to illustrate humour as a means of
resistance in this context, the article is engaging and easy to understand. While this article
offers specific insight into a moment in time it also highlights themes which help situate
this study, namely, satire as it relates to power, participation, rationality and trust.
Satire in the Age of Social Media. Digital channels like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube
have increasingly become venues for satirical content as the political public sphere moves
online. These forums for entertainment and networking are also forums for debate,
particularly among millennials. The impact of digital media on communication could form
a separate thesis. There is a large volume of literature that deals specifically with the
impacts and effects of the modern media environment on participation, and
conceptualisations of the mass media and the public sphere (Bennett & Iyengar, 2008,
p.707). The political effects and agenda setting literature is valuable in that it
demonstrates the need to think critically about new channels and their impacts on civic
participation. This is particularly important when coupled with a rise in professionalised
politics, where changes in traditional political communication can impact conceptions of
democracy and citizenship (Blumler & Kavanagh, 1999). Whether an environment is
studied through the lens of political efficacy, power structures, audiences or channels, the
constant remains: satirical political communication requires some recognition of context.
In their article, “The Third Age of Political Communication: Influences and Features”,
Blumler and Kavanagh (1999) survey the shifts in political communication by grouping
technological changes in society into three key periods.
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The first is characterised by stable institutions and societal beliefs, the second by a mobile
electorate and the professionalisation of politics, and the third by an economic model
characterised by the dual imperatives of abundance and diversification (Blumler &
Kavanagh, 1999, p.210). Using these distinct phases, this article discusses the impacts of
a proliferation of avenues for political communication in relation to the power dynamics
between different political actors. While this article provides a sound contextual basis on
which to study the rise and impact of social media on satirical political communication, it
is limited in its relevance to the discussion of the digital public sphere itself. For example,
there is reference to “computer-based research” (Blumler & Kavanagh, 1999, p.215) which
demonstrates how out of date the authors’ observations around technological change are.
But the digital age is not the first to prompt discussion about the effect a channel has on
content. Colletta (2009) looks to the impact television as a medium had on satirical
discourse. Colletta’s work is set apart from other academics in this field in that it is
grounded in postmodern theory. The theoretical foundation of her analysis is based on
the idea that “reality is constructed rather than perceived or understood” (Colletta, 2009,
p.1). She argues that television in particular is slave to a certain “self-referential irony”,
defined as an awareness of our own role in constructed meaning, which can present as a
“cynical knowingness and self-referentiality” (Colletta, 2009, p.1) or pastiche, which is
often satiric. Colletta argues television’s self-reflexive format can actually trivialise the
seriousness of satire. She says televised satire is often saturated with meta-jokes,
spectacle and competing opinions which can mask its serious intention (2009).
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But unlike other literature on satire and political participation, Colletta (2009) deals with
televised satire in terms of aesthetics, as a form of seduction and emotional response.
Colletta argues we are seduced by the medium and comforted by the idea that we are
aware of the seduction (Colletta, 2009, p.858). This framework underpins her argument
in a unique way. The strength of McClennen and Maisel’s (2014) contribution to the
literature is their detailed analysis of trends in satire by channel. In their chapter;
“Mesmerized Millennials and Byte-ing Satire” the authors traverse the various online
channels where satire has taken root. For example, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
Snapchat, YouTube and Tumblr to name only a selection. The value of McClennen and
Maisel’s (2014) work is that it focuses on the specificity of the digital format. They argue
that “shorter forms of social critique...repackage the news in witty, brief, sarcastic ways”
(p.139) have spurred a “viral phenomena” (p.139) allowing independent satirists and big
cable channels alike to slice up content in a way that sees it shared instantly with
international audiences. The ease with which citizens are able to add, amend and
editorialise existing news has seen a “convergence between producer and consumer”
(Jones in McClennen & Maisel, 2014, p.139) that supports the further democratisation of
satire. In drawing conclusions about the impact of this ‘byte-sized’ political communication
McClennen and Maisel argue that “millennials are strong believers in community and
collective action...and are adept at creating communities larger and more diverse than
any previous generation” (Well, Winograd and Hai in McClennen and Maisel, 2014, p.150).
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They suggest that rather than dumbing down political debate the digital environment has
allowed millennials to repackage and rebrand citizenship, “not abandon it completely”
(p.150). The immediacy and access provided by digital media was another common theme
in the literature. The direct engagement between satirist and subject, enabled by channels
like Twitter and Facebook, where satirists can “tag” people or organisations, thereby
speaking directly to them --changes the dynamic of the message being sent compared
with say a televised broadcast or printed column (McClennen & Maisel, 2014). While digital
media enables quick-fire communication to large audiences on converged digital channels,
it can also limit audiences or stymie the ability for satire to access audiences where
genuine political debate can take place. As Bershidsky (2017) argues in the article
“Democracy has never faced a threat like Facebook”, there are increasing concerns that
the demographic and political silos enabled by targeted advertising and campaigning on
social media actually destroy chances for meaningful debate (Vestager in Bershidsky,
2017). So where satirical content used to be viewed on national television by a fairly
widespread portion of the population, content today can miss entire demographics, not
based on their personal decision to turn the television on or off, but based on algorithms
generated by browsing activity. While this is a concern for students of civic participation
it also explains the unique environment in which millennials are operating.
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Related Studies
Critical Insight on Digital Media Usage for Political Campaigns
The inventions and innovations that lead to the development of social media play
an essential role to the transfer of information nationally and globally. Considering the
rapidness of communication through digital channels, political propaganda naturally took
its place in the grand scheme. This also contributes to the rise of the internet meme,
which is defined by Quora as “an activity, concept, catchphrase or piece of media which
spreads, often as mimicry, from person to person via the Internet;” a derivative of
memetics—the name of the study of the evolutionary models of cultural information
transfer. Here, the paper evaluates the effects of the transition from print to digital forms
of propaganda. Authors of “The use of memes in the discourse of political parties on
Twitter” interpret the role social media and internet memes fulfilled in the Spanish 2015
state of the nation debate: “The transition between traditional politics to social media has
given rise to new spaces, forms and languages for political communication” (Martínez9
Rolán, Piñeiro-Otero, 2016). The analysis drew two trends that constructs the
“manifestation and ideal of memes:” to strengthen the ideas of the preferred candidate
and leader, and to criticize opposition, which was the Spanish government in this study.
This conclusion solidifies the notion that internet memes are emerging as the main tool of
political propaganda proliferated by individuals who participate in political involvement at
the comfort of their keyboard.
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Political participation. Henry Jenkins (2009) outlined new forms of participatory
politics. Political activity has become more prominent through online activity. Creating and
sharing memes are strategies within this new form of online politics. The new politics
extends people’s understanding of what constitutes political activism. Political participatory
practice includes encoding and decoding the meme parodies (Szablewicz, 2014; &
Hristova, 2013). The potential for an image and an icon to be politically meaningful relies
not only on the aesthetic elements but more importantly on their capability to be
persuasive and evoke significant responses.
Dawkins mentions that memes are a small part of our culture. (Chick, 1999) This
spreads from one person to another by imitation or copying. These memes are thus an
important component while media from a political science perspective. Memes have
become new form of civic participation too. (Shiftman, 2013)(Nowak, 2013) There has
been a direct relationship between politics and popular culture. This relationship has been
explored through various studies. A study by Bayrm (2008) explains how entertainment
has been used as a medium to involve audiences in political issues and for helping them
to understand politics. Jones (2010) in his study explains how satirical television as a form
of popular culture can result in informed, critically sound and active citizens who have
high political engagement. (Plevriti, 2013) (Segev, 2015) (Reime, 2012)
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Internet Memes as an Example of Political Dissatisfaction of Poles on the
Internet
Internet meme has been an important part of the social life as it helps in opinion
formation. Amongst the various roles, a major one is that it helps in conveying information.
Most of the times for digital natives it acts like a primary source of information too as they
turn to read more of the news on the basis of the memes made on it. (Liisi Lainesk, 2016)
Memes are used as a medium for persuading citizens to vote for a particular political party.
Shiftman in his book- ‘Memes in Digital Culture’, explains how this medium was efficiently
used during the 2008 US elections. His research mentions that these memes are more of
user generated content than information generated by political elites. Even though they
are user generated these memes look professional. They include videos and photos
produced by professional artists. A lot of research goes into making of these content as a
part of political campaigning. Shiftman mentions that these memes are a mode through
which civic participation is encouraged as the citizens can express their political opinions
and be a part of debates and discussions which cannot be done through traditional
mediums. (Shiftman, 2013).
Political campaigners use memes as a medium for communicating with the
netizens. Paid bloggers, micro bloggers and commenters are hired to generate content.
They thus create images and opinions in the mind of people. A recent report mentions
that in Azerbaijan, the production and circulation of internet memes were included as a
part of their social media strategy.
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Memes are used for propaganda to reinforce ideologies, identities and stereotypes. Even
during the World War One, these memes were used in the form of satirical texts, images
and artistic expressions. Poets and artists were hired even during those days to create
cartoons and messages which could be publicised through posters and newspapers
(Leong, 2015).
There has been an increase in the number of individuals who use internet, social
media websites as well as the number of individuals who use social media websites for
their political activities (Nowak, 2016). The main target of these netizens using new media
for political discourse is the digital natives (Heiskanen, 2017). The people who follow these
social media websites are engaged in commenting and sharing this information further to
other audiences. They produce and distribute content too. These users are politically very
active by liking and commenting on various issues which thus encourages political
engagement. (Brunello, 2012) (Chandler, 2008). While the literature on memes in general
is limited, the field of political memes is even slimmer. Piata (2016) analyzes political
memes from the frame of understanding the role of metaphor in humour. She finds that
the format of memes, when combined with humour, creates an accessible political
commentary. However, while Piata (2016) uses memes as a frame of analysis, it should
be noted that the focus of her study is on the theoretical relationship between metaphor
and humour, not the nature of the memes themselves.
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This gap is somewhat filled by Ross and Rivers (2017), who explore the role of memes as
conductors of ideology, specifically their use in delegitimizing political candidates. They
frame this research within the theory of SMC discussed in the previous section, where
much of ones community is made up of like-minded individuals. Ross and Rivers (2017)
suggest that the anonymity of memes allow individual to spread increasingly controversial
material within OSN. Regardless of the individual’s motives in sharing such content,
whether for humour, or belief in the material being shared, identity theory suggests that
continued exposure to such ideas will lead others to adapt their dialog, thus changing the
political landscape (Elder-Vass, 2012). Based upon the literature compiled, one can
conclude that an individual’s social network is essential to the development of personal
and collective identity. With the use of modern technology, these communities can both
form and mobilize online. However, the nature of these connections is changing the
manner in which SMCs develop, as anonymity is putting increased emphasis on the
knowledge of community specific dialog and norms. Specifically, memes are a form of
community dialog, akin to any other vocabulary within a given frame. Yet given this
significance, very little research has been done to date in attempts to understand which
memes are accepted by the digital SMC, and succeed to reach a wider audience, and
which memes are rejected.
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Summary
This literature review focused on the rise of internet memes as a satirical tool with
specific attention on promoting socio political awareness. Cultural and political knowledge
are propagated by the circulation of memes. Memes are gene-like cultural unit transmitted
via person to person. Internet memes are dispersed within the technoculture. Memes are
micro-level expressions that can be examined to analyze the macro level discourses.
Politically, the Internet meme carries the possibility of participation. Because of the low
skill and technique requirement for participation, Internet memes include more voices and
the possibility for more public political engagement. Furthermore, humor has been a
common element constituting Internet memes to shape identity and transmit cultural
meaning throughout the intercultural communication.
This literature review also demonstrates the vast terrain covered by the academic
literature on satire and gives some context to satire’s broad and often varied definition.
Satire presents as relying heavily on the tools of humour and ‘piss-taking’, with irony and
contradiction often preferred to cynicism and sarcasm. This is an important element in the
literature that was tested with satirists themselves in interviews for the long-format piece
of journalism. The literature also demonstrates a more earnest conversation where satire
is seen as an important tool for political participation, and for drawing people together for
political purpose. Many of the satirists interviewed expressed a dogmatic commitment to
humour without any reverence or attention to satire’s service to democracy.
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Themes in the literature related to political efficacy revealed the causal link between satire
and civic participation is limited, particularly in terms of an evidence. This was supported
by interviews with satirists who had no data on which to assess the impact of their work,
and were not seeking to quantify their impact on those terms. In fact, overall the literature
is light in terms of its applicability to the experiences, meaning interviews were essential
to fully explore the subject of satire and the rise of the citizen satirist.
The related studies in this paper tells about the critical insights on digital media
usage for political campaigns in which the inventions and innovations that lead to the
development of social media play an important role to the transfer of information
nationally and globally. This enhances political participation in which political activity has
become more prominent through online activity. Next, internet memes as an example of
political dissatisfaction of poles in the internet tells about the significance of internet meme
to the social life as it helps in opinion formation and conveying information. Lastly, satirical
user-generated memes as an effective source of political criticism, extending debate and
enhancing civic engagement explores different academic perspectives, studies and
debates on the rise of meme culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness.
Indeed, satire in the age of social media is presented with some unique challenges,
a theme the long-format piece of journalism explores in detail. While there is a lot of
literature around changing norms and conceptions of citizenship, as well as the impacts
of digital technology, the corporatisation of media is a thread which requires further
investigation. There is a gap in the literature in this area.
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Chapter 3
Research Design and Methodology
This chapter includes two parts: (1) Research Design and (2) Methodology.
Part One, Research Design presented the design adopted in this investigation and
included the purpose of the study.
Part Two, Methodology, contained the participants, narrated the sampling method,
research instrument, narrated the data gathering procedure and presented the statistical
data analysis procedure.

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Research Design
The qualitative descriptive research design that is used in this study is the Thematic
Analysis. The data collected served as the bases in answering the problems written on the
statement of the problem. The variables in the study are the rise of meme culture to
students as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness and its relationship to
senior high school (HUMSS) students.
Purpose of the Study
The study aimed to identify the influence of the meme culture as a satirical tool to
promote socio political awareness to senior high school (HUMSS) students as well as their
awareness and coping mechanisms. It will also identify the strengths and weaknesses of
socio political issues with the use of satirical memes. Further, it aims to give awareness
not only to the students, but also to the teachers, school administrators, parents and
future researchers.
Methodology
This is a one-phase qualitative study that collated the answers of the respondents
to the questions focused on.
Initially, the researchers assured the respondents, the Senior High School (HUMSS)
students composed of 30 participants to participate in the study.
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Next, upon the consent of each participant, the researchers administered the
questionnaires to the respondents and gathered as well as performed an interview and
recorded.
The Participants
The participants in this study were the students of Colegio de San Jose, Senior
High School Department, specifically under the Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS)
strands, enrolled in the first semester of the school year 2018-2019.
A pilot-test has been conducted for reliability test of the instruments with the senior
high school (HUMSS) students. With the overall population of 201 senior high school
(HUMSS) students, 30 of whom are chosen randomly as respondents. This was also
conducted in the same setting.
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Table 1.
Matrix of the Participants
STRAND
(Humanities and Social NO. OF MALES NO. OF TOTAL

Sciences) FEMALES
GRADE 11- HUMSS 1 1 5 6
GRADE 12-HUMSS 2 0 6 6
TOTAL 2 28 30
Sampling Method and Research Instrumentation
This study employed a random sampling method wherein the senior high school
(HUMSS) students who are studying at Colegio de San Jose were made respondents of
this study.
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Also, the senior high school (HUMSS) students of the same institution were made
participants for pilot-testing to test the reliability of the instruments. Each of them were
given an open-ended questionnaire which has undergone reliability test.
Data Gathering Procedure
The instrument, questionnaires were developed and thoroughly checked by the
researchers and the research adviser. Through the survey, responses were assessed
based on whether the participants recognized a change in their opinions and political views
based on the variety of media used to convey ideals. This includes, but is not limited to:
printed propaganda, infographics, videos of varying lengths, and internet memes. The
demographics of the sample included HUMSS students because it is important to consider
that politics affects everyone with many backgrounds.
Stage 1: In this phase, the researchers developed a permission to conduct a
study on the office of the Higher Education Department. Upon approval, the researchers
had personally submitted the research consent to the participants or respondents to
ensure the confidentiality and secure the identity of the respondents. The said
questionnaires are composed of questions that seek to determine the themes on the rise
of meme culture to students as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness.
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After the respondents were officially chosen, the questionnaires and an interview were
administered and allowed the participants to study it. Afterwards, the data was collected,
recorded, and interpreted. The administering of test questionnaires and the interview
were done during the participant’s vacant period, on a specific time schedule, and a
particular location.
Stage 2: Stage involved the generation of themes which were drawn from the
data of the participants. After the data are collected and interpreted, the researchers
formed various codes out of them. To form these codes, the researchers tried to find the
meanings or key ideas from the data by manually analyzing and identifying their concepts
which will be based on their similarity. As the analysis goes on, new patterns of ideas have
emerged resulting to formulation of another codes. When the codes are formulated, these
were sorted out in order to formulate groups or themes. The responses of the respondents
under each theme has given corresponding percentage. Responses which came out to be
irrelevant were eliminated. It was done in order to ensure the significance of the data
being gathered.
Procedure: To obtain the data needed, the researchers asked permission from
the office of the Principal of the Higher Education Department to conduct the study where
the respondents are enrolled. With the permission, the instruments were administered
through the help of class adviser. After which, the responses were gathered, analyzed and
categorized using computer software.
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Data Analysis Procedure
In analyzing the data, a thematic analysis was used which followed a certain
procedure. The Thematic Analysis (TA) provides an entry into a way of doing research
that can seem vague, mystifying, conceptually changing and oral complex. If offers a
qualitative research that teaches the mechanics of coding and analyses qualitative data
systematically.
This procedure has 6 phases: familiarizing the data, generating initial codes,
searching for themes, reviewing the potential themes, defining and naming themes and
writing the analysis.
Phase 1. Familiarizing the data. After gathering the data, the researchers read and
familiarized themselves with the answers of every respondent answering the questions:
“what is meme?” and “what is meme culture?”
Phase 2. Generating Initial Codes. The gathered data were grouped and an initial
list of ideas were generated about what was in the data and what wass interesting in each
of them.
Phase 3. Searching for themes. The researchers analyzed the initial coded and
collected data. Then differentiated each code that may have combined to form an
overarching theme. A visual presentation (like table diagram) is used to aid in sorting the
different codes into themes.
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Phase 4. Reviewing the potential themes. The researchers devised and revised a
set of candidates of themes. This phase involved two levels. Level one involved reviewing
at the level of the coded data extracts. The collated extracts were read and patterns were
determined within them, if there was no pattern formed, the researchers formulated new
themes. Level two involved the same process just like in level one but required validity of
individual themes in relation to the data set. In this phase, the researchers used a thematic
map to accurately reflect the meanings evident in a data set as whole. The entire data set
again were analyzed and set in order to ascertain the relationship of the following data to
the themes and reviewed following codes whether any additional data within themes that
has been missed in earlier stages.
Phase 5. Defining and naming themes. In this phase, they defined and further
refined each theme that was presented in the analysis. Also, in this phase the essence
and importance of what each theme is about has been identified and determined what
aspect of the data each theme captures. The themes further organized into a coherent
and internally consistent record.
Phase 6. Writing the analysis. Finally, a fully worked out themes were determined
and involved the finals analysis and write up of the report.
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PHASE 1
• Familiarizing the Data
PHASE 2
• Generating Initial Codes
PHASE 3
• Searching for Themes
PHASE 4
• Reviewing the Potential Themes
PHASE 5
• Defining and Naming Themes
PHASE 6
• Writing the Analysis
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Chapter 4
Results and Discussion
Chapter 4 is divided into two parts: 1) Thematic Analysis for Question Numbers 1,
2 and 3; 2) Descriptive Data Analysis.
Part One, Thematic Analysis, discusses the results of the respondents’ responses
in question #1, “what is meme?”; question #2, “what is meme culture?’’; question #3,
“can memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness?”
Part Two, Descriptive Data Analysis, presents the descriptive data and their
respective analyses and interpretations to specifically answer and give light to questions
given in the research questionnaire regarding the awareness of the senior high school
(HUMSS) students to the rise of meme culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political
awareness, their perceptions, the activities they are engaged in as well as the type of
media they’ve consumed when dealing with memes.

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Further, the result of the question, “what is meme?”, that produced thirty answers
were properly coded. The codes underwent thematic analysis that resulted to the five
themes extracted and reflected below.
Theme 1. “A meme is a visual graphic intended to give message and
entertain the audience”: knowing the intention of memes in a form of picture.
It refers to the purpose of memes which is to give message and entertain the audience
or netizens. It is in a form of pictures which are presented creatively and uniquely.
Theme 2. “A meme is a funny and an interesting picture which easily
catches the attention of netizens”: discovering the appeal of memes to the
audience. This focuses on how appealing, entertaining and interesting memes are. It can
easily attract a netizen’s attention or curiosity whenever they scan or look at it.
Theme 3. “A meme is always famous and trending in different social
networking sites”: how memes are considered as influential in different social
media platforms. This outlines on how memes became popular throughout the different
forms or social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and many
others. These widespread of memes trigger the netizens to share it, thus making it viral.
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Theme 4. “A meme is what we always share on different social media
platforms”: why netizens are fond of sharing memes. This explains the underlying
reasons on why netizens love to share memes in different social networking sites and
what encouraged or pushed them to do so.
Theme 5. “A meme is a cultural transmission”: meme as a part of a
netizen’s daily routine. This tells about on how memes became a part of a netizen’s
way of life which can be discovered, learned, accepted, shared and thus transmit it to
everyone in the internet as time goes by.
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Thematic Analysis for Question #1 “What is meme?”
These are the answers for question #1, “What is meme?”, taken from 30
respondents.
R1: “A meme is an entertaining picture in which netizens are making fun of it.”
R2: “A meme is a picture that contains jokes to entertain people.”
R3: “A meme is a random picture edited by a person in order to entertain.”
R4: “A meme diverts a casual photo to a funny one, and putting it into captions related to
a person in order to make fun or entertain.”
R5: “A meme is a picture which contains funny lines in order to make others laugh or
entertained.”
R6: “A meme is a photo which goes viral from people locally or internationally and also
brings enthusiasm on people who use the internet or social media.”
R7: “A meme is a visual graphic intended to entertain the audience which sometimes has
a hidden message.”
R8: “A meme is a picture with funny captions intended to entertain the netizens.”
R9: “Meme are funny jokes existing in different social media platforms with sarcasm and
a touch of wit.”
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R10: “Meme is making funny ideas on the internet.”
R11: “A meme is a humorous and funny version of certain things. It is also interesting
which can easily catch a netizen’s attention.”
R12: “Memes contain funny and interesting captions.”
R13: “Memes can attract the attention of people easily.”
R14: “Memes are very funny.”
R15: “A meme is funny and an eye-catcher.”
R16: “Memes are funny and full of sarcasm.”
R17: “Memes are interesting.”
R18: “Memes contain funny messages which aims to make fun or mock others.”
R19: “Memes contain funny descriptions to catch a person’s interest.”
R20: “A meme is a unit of cultural transmission.”
R21: “A meme is an idea or behavior that spreads from one person to another.”
R22: “A meme is a cultural equivalent of the unit of physical heredity, the gene.”
R23: “A meme is a belief, a concept or a practice that spreads from one person to another.”
R24: “A meme can be transmitted from one person to another through social media.”
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R25: “A meme continuously rises as time goes by through netizens who transmit
information from different places.”
R26: “A meme is an idea or style that spreads from one person to another.”
R27: “Memes are what we share on facebook, instagram and twitter.”
R28: “Memes are shared to other people through social networking sites which contains
our mood at the moment and enlightens the atmosphere of the person reading or viewing
it.”
R29: “Memes are well known in our society in these days that is why it is considered as a
trend especially in social media in which teenagers or adults get easily attracted by memes
they’re reading and eventually share it.”
R30: “Memes are very famous and is everywhere.”
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Further, the result of the question, “what is meme culture?”, that produced thirty
answers were properly coded. The codes underwent thematic analysis that resulted to the
five themes extracted and reflected below.
Theme 1. “Meme Culture as part of a netizen’s everyday lives”: knowing
the reasons why memes are already considered as part of a netizen’s daily
routine. It refers to how memes are connected within the netizens’ everyday lives. The
impact of memes made them fond of it to the point that they consider sharing memes as
a hobby whenever they log in into different social media platforms.
Theme 2. “Meme Culture and their relationship between
people/netizens”: discovering the connection of memes to the audience. This
focuses on how memes can be linked and relate to the netizens which made an impact
not only to them but also to the society. Memes develop a sense of identity and
belongingness towards the netizens since it can’t only make them feel entertained, but
can also make them relate to it.
Theme 3. “Meme Culture is made to make fun or entertain someone or
something on a certain situation”: how can memes describe someone or a
situation in a manner that is either to entertain or mock. This outlines on how
memes are made as to make fun and entertain people or things on a certain even or
experience. Memes are in a form of pictures with captions which is either made to
describe, make fun and mock someone or something.
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Theme 4. “Meme Culture as a major contributor to modern day slangs”:
why memes tend to create and popularize new languages. This explains on how
memes can produce creative and unique Filipino and English slangs which contributed
largely in a person’s way of speaking in this present time. Peculiarity of languages in
memes can easily attract an audience’s attention since it adds color or flavor to it.
Theme 5. “Meme Culture as influential and trends rapidly regarding a
certain situation”: meme being devastatingly popular and conforming. This tells
about on how memes can convince netizens through its message and the reasons on why
it is easily viral. As the world keeps on developing and the advent of technology is
undeniably growing, many unexpected events will arise as well as people with gifted ability
will be born that will surely continue to spread the legacy of memes in the future years.
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Thematic Analysis for Question #2 “What is meme culture?”
These are the answers for question #2, “What is meme culture?”, taken from 30
respondents.
R1: “The culture of meme is to make fun, mock or entertain people on a certain situation.”
R2: “Meme culture is to entertain by making fun of others.”
R3: “Meme culture involves satire to mock famous persons and make fun of them.”
R4: “Culture of memes are more on making fun of others in different situations.”
R5: “The culture of meme is becoming a part of our everyday lives.”
R6: “Meme culture continues to rise as the number of people using social media continues
to grow and they tend to share memes when they log in and make it as a daily routine
whenever they feel entertained by a certain meme(s).”
R7: “Meme culture consists of funny ideas that is usually derived from our cultures or
traditions.”
R8: “A meme culture is a unit of cultural information which is spread through social media.”
R9: “The culture of meme is already connected within us.”
R10: “Meme culture is like a part of our everyday lives in which we are already used to it.”
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R11: “A meme’s culture is already in us whenever we use social media and share several
memes which we find entertaining.”
R12: “Meme culture is where people who edit epic photos from different genres and when
people or netizens relate to it, they share the particular photo thus making it viral.”
R13: “Meme culture can relate to a person’s experience that is why many are entertained
which leads to sharing.”
R14: “Meme culture is the relation of someone’s way of life to the memes they shared. It
is also a trend nowadays that is why it is already considered as part of our youth, not only
for us post-millennials.”
R15: “Meme culture is already flourishing in different mediums and many new words are
created because of memes.”
R16: “Meme culture has been considered as one of the major contributors to modern day
Filipino and English slang.”
R17: “The culture of meme develops a unique and creative language or words which are
posted in forms of caption or a description.”
R18: “Meme culture is the rapid trend of memes in different topics regarding the situations
happening around the country.”
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R19: “Meme culture is devastatingly growing because of the advent of social media
platforms.”
R21: “The culture of memes are trending most especially in Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram.”
R22: “The culture of meme becomes trending whenever there is a significant situation in
which something funny or memorable happened.”
R23: “Meme culture is really famous since the world continues to develop and many
unexpected events tend to happen wherein people can always edit photos relating the
event(s).”
R24: “Meme culture is always trending because there are many creative netizens who
enjoys making memes.”
R26: “Meme culture greatly influences individuals through its content which relays a
message.”
R28: “Culture of memes becomes influential depending on its content whether it is a
famous persona, a place or a situation.”
R29: “Meme culture influences both millennials and post-millennials.”
R30: “Meme culture’s influence to the people in social media is important because it doesn’t
only entertain but is also one of the means to deliver or relay a message.
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Question # 3: “Can memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political
awareness?”
Based on the findings of the study, 24 out of 30 respondents answered YES, that
indeed, according to R4, memes can serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political
awareness because, memes are very funny and it can easily catch the attention of the
netizens. Also, R17 answered that using satire in memes through funny captions can relay
information wittingly as well as promote awareness in politics. R21 also answered that
memes can also enhance civic engagement or participation within netizens by widespread
sharing through different social media platforms and lastly, according to R28, students
are fond of using social media in which memes can be seen everywhere and since it rapidly
trends, the dissemination of information or message involving politics will also become
embracing and extensive.
For those respondents who answered NO, in which only there are only six of them,
memes cannot serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness since
according R11, meme is unethical. R13 also answered that the use of satire involves
mocking and making fun of others thus making it inappropriate. Lastly, R25 answered that
satirical memes can also lead to fake news and biases.
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Descriptive Data Analysis
To describe the basic features of the study, the researcher formulated questions
regarding the awareness of the senior high school (HUMSS) students to the rise of meme
culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness, their perceptions, the
activities they are engaged in as well as the type of media they’ve consumed when dealing
with memes.
The following table gives the measures of central tendency including the mean,
mode and standard deviation about the awareness and perception of senior high school
(HUMSS) students regarding the study, “The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a
Satirical Tool to Promote Socio Political Awareness”.
Table 3.1. Measures of Central Tendency about the Awareness and
Perception of Senior High School (HUMSS) students regarding the study
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From the preceding table, it appears that for the age of 30 senior high school
(HUMSS) students, the mean is approximately equal to 2.2000. The mode is 2.00. The
standard deviation is .76112.
In case of the gender of the of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students, the mean
is approximately equal to 2.0000. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is .26261.
In case of the level of education of the of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students,
the mean is approximately equal to 1.0000. The mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is
.00000.
In case of the tasks worked during the participation of the 30 senior high school
(HUMSS) students on the survey, the mean is approximately equal to 1.5333. The mode
is 2.00. The standard deviation is .50742.
In case of the answer of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students regarding the
question, “how funny was the meme?”, the mean is approximately equal to 2.9667. The
mode is 3.00. The standard deviation is .71840.
question, “what is the message of the meme?”, the mean is approximately equal to
1.5000. The mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is .77682.
question, “have you seen the message prior to the study?”, the mean is approximately
equal to 2.0333. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is .76489.
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question, “were you familiar with the message before participating in the study?”, the
mean is approximately equal to 2.4333. The mode is 3.00. The standard deviation is
.62606.
In case of the answer of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students regarding their
emotions while participating in this study, the mean is approximately equal to 4.8667. The
mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is 5.07008.
In case of the answer of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students regarding their
political views, the mean is approximately equal to 2.1333. The mode is 2.00. The
standard deviation is .86037.
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mode and standard deviation about the results of the respondents regarding the activities
they are engaged in relation with politics during the past 12 months of senior high school
(HUMSS) students regarding the study, “The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a
Satirical Tool to Promote Socio Political Awareness”.
Table 3.2. Measures of Central Tendency about the Activities Engaged in
relation with Politics during the past 12 months of Senior High School (HUMSS)
students regarding the study
In case of the answer of 30 senior high school (HUMSS) students regarding
question letter A, “Contributed money online to a candidate?”, the mean is approximately
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question letter B, “Started or joined a political group, or group supporting a cause on a
social networking site?”, the mean is approximately equal to 1.4000. The mode is 1.00.
The standard deviation is .62146.
question letter C, “Signed up as a “friend” of any candidates on a social networking site?”,
the mean is approximately equal to1.7333. The mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is
.98027.
question letter D, “Signed up online for any volunteer activities related to a political
campaign, like helping to register voters or get people to the polls?”, the mean is
approximately equal to 1.5000. The mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is .77682.
question letter E, “Customized a Web page to display new political or campaign
information?”, the mean is approximately equal to 1.2333. The mode is 1.00. The standard
deviation is .50401.
question letter F, “Attended a political meeting, rally, or speech?”, the mean is
approximately equal to 2.0000. The mode is 1.00. The standard deviation is 1.11417.
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question letter G, “Worked for a political party or candidate?”, the mean is approximately
question letter H, “Shared photos, videos, or audio files online that relate to politics?”, the
mean is approximately equal to 2.3667. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is
1.25762.
question letter I, “Forwarded someone else’s political commentary or writing, or political
audio or video to others?”, the mean is approximately equal to 2.0000. The mode is 2.00.
The standard deviation is 1.18855.
question letter J, “Posted comments, queries, or information about politics in an online
discussion forum, blog, social networking site, or Web site of any kind?”, the mean is
approximately equal to 2.0667. The 1.00. The standard deviation is 1.05045.
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mode and standard deviation about the results of the respondents regarding the types of
media consumed regarding the past 30 days of senior high school (HUMSS) students
regarding the study, “The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a Satirical Tool to Promote
Socio Political Awareness”
Table 3.3. Measures of Central Tendency about the Types of Media
Consumed during the past 30 days of Senior High School (HUMSS) students
regarding the study
question letter K, “National broadcast TV news programs?”, the mean is approximately
equal to 2.9333. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is 1.25762.
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question letter L, “Local broadcast TV news programs?”, the mean is approximately equal
to2.8333. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is 1.28877.
question letter M, “Cable TV news programs?”, the mean is approximately equal to3.9667.
The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is 7.26106.
question letter N, “Print newspaper?”, the mean is approximately equal to 2.2000. The
mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is .96132.
question letter O, “A news organization’s website?”, the mean is approximately equal to
2.9000. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is .99481.
question letter P, “Blogs or personal sites?”, the mean is approximately equal to 3.2000.
question letter Q, “Late-night comedy programs?”, the mean is approximately equal to
3.0333. The mode is 3.00. The standard deviation is 1.24522.
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question letter R, “Broadcast dramatic programs?”, the mean is approximately equal to
3.1000. The mode is 2.00. The standard deviation is 1.18467.
question letter S, “Cable comedy programs?”, the mean is approximately equal to3.1000.
question letter T, “Social media sites (e.g. Twitter, Facebook, Instagram)?”, the mean is
approximately equal to 4.4333. The mode is 5.00. The standard deviation is 1.16511.
question letter U, “Looked at internet memes?”, the mean is approximately eq1.03057.
question letter V, “Shared internet memes?”, the mean is approximately equal to 4.0667.
question letter W, “Created internet memes?”, the mean is approximately equal to 1.8667.
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Table 3.4. Senior High School (HUMSS) Students taken as a whole and when
classified according to Age.
AGE
Cumulative
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Percent
Valid 16 5 16.7 16.7 16.7
17 15 50.0 50.0 66.7
18 9 30.0 30.0 96.7
19 1 3.3 3.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.4 shows the age of Senior High School (HUMSS) students who participated
in the study. When taken as a whole, majority are 17 years old (50%), next is 18 years
old with (30%), 16 years old with (16.7%) and lastly, 19 years old with (3.3%).
This means that majority of the students who participated in the study are 17
years old.
Graph 3.4 shows the percentage results of the age of the students who
participated in the study.
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classified according to Gender.
GENDER
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative Percent
Valid MALE 1 3.3 3.3 3.3
FEMALE 28 93.3 93.3 96.7
PREFER NOT TO DISCLOSE 1 3.3 3.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.5 shows the Gender of Senior High School (HUMSS) students who
participated in the study. When taken as a whole, majority are Female with (93.3%),
next is male with (3.3%) and lastly one person preferred not to disclose their gender
with (3.3%).
This means that majority of the students who participated in the study Female.
Graph 3.5 shows the percentage results of the gender of the students who
participated in the study.
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classified according to their Level of Education.
LEVEL OF EDUCATION

Valid HIGHSCHOOL 30 100.0 100.0 100.0
Table 3.6 shows the Level of Education of Senior High School (HUMSS) students
who participated in the study. When taken as a whole, all of them are in High School level
of education with (100%).
This means that majority of the students who participated in the study are in High
School.
Graph 3.6 shows the percentage results of the level of education of the students
who participated in the study.
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Table 3.7. Senior High School (HUMSS) Students taken as a whole and
when classified according to their involvement on any tasks before
participating in the study.
WORKING ON A TASK DURING SURVEY

Valid YES 14 46.7 46.7 46.7
NO 16 53.3 53.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.7 shows involvement of Senior High School (HUMSS) students on any tasks
before participating in the study. When taken as a whole, 46.7% of them answered yes
and 53.3% answered no.
This means that majority of the students were not involved on any tasks before
participating in the study.
Graph 3.7 shows the percentage results of the involvement of senior high school
(HUMSS) students before participating in the study.
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Further discussions will talk about the results of the respondents regarding their
awareness of the meme presented in the discussion.
Table 3.8. QUESTION #1: HOW FUNNY WAS THE MEME?

Valid A LITTLE FUNNY 8 26.7 26.7 26.7
MODERATELY FUNNY 15 50.0 50.0 76.7
VERY FUNNY 7 23.3 23.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.8 shows the answers of the respondents regarding the question, “How
funny was the meme?”, in which 50% find it moderately funny, 26.7% find it a little funny
and 23.3% find it very funny.
This means that majority of the students find the meme moderately funny.
Graph 3.8. shows the percentage results of the answers of the senior high school
students regarding question number 1, “how funny was the meme?”.
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Table 3.9. QUESTION #2: WHAT IS THE MESSAGE OF THE MEME?

Valid LIBERAL 20 66.7 66.7 66.7
CONSERVATIVE 5 16.7 16.7 83.3
NOT POLITICAL AT ALL 5 16.7 16.7 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.9 shows the answers of the respondents regarding the question, “What is
the message of the meme?”, in which 66.67% answered it is liberal, and 16.67%
answered that it is conservative and not political at all.
This means that majority of the students find the message of the meme Liberal.
Graph 3.9 shows the percentage results of the answers of the senior high school
students regarding question number 2, “what is the message of the meme?”.
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Table 4.10 QUESTION #3: HAVE YOU SEEN THE MESSAGE PRIOR TO THIS STUDY?

Valid YES 8 26.7 26.7 26.7
NO 13 43.3 43.3 70.0
DONT KNOW/UNSURE 9 30.0 30.0 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 4.10 shows the answers of the respondents regarding the question, “Have you
seen the message prior to this study?”, in which 43.3% answered no, 30% answered they are
unsure and 26.7% answered yes.
This means that majority of the students have not seen the message prior to the study.
students regarding question number 3, “have you seen the message prior to the study?”.
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Table 4.11. QUESTION #4: ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE MESSAGE BEFORE
PARTICIPATING IN THIS STUDY?

Valid VERY SLIGHTLY 2 6.7 6.7 6.7
A LITTLE 13 43.3 43.3 50.0
MODERATELY 15 50.0 50.0 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 4.11 shows the answers of the respondents regarding the question, “Are you
familiar with the message before participating in this study?”, in which 50% answered
moderately, 43.3% answered a little, and 6.7% answered very lightly.
This means that majority of the students are moderately familiar with the message
before participating in this study.
students regarding question number 3, “Are you familiar with the message before participating
in this study?”.
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Further discussions will talk about the results of the respondents
regarding their political perceptions.
Table 3.12. QUESTION #5: EMOTIONS FELT DURING THE PARTICIPATION IN THIS
STUDY

Valid INTERESTED 11 36.7 36.7 36.7
DISTRESSED 1 3.3 3.3 40.0
EXCITED 4 13.3 13.3 53.3
UPSET 3 10.0 10.0 63.3
STRONG 4 13.3 13.3 76.7
GUILTY 1 3.3 3.3 80.0
HOSTILE 1 3.3 3.3 83.3
IRRITABLE 1 3.3 3.3 86.7
ALERT 1 3.3 3.3 90.0
NERVOUS 1 3.3 3.3 93.3
ATTENTIVE 1 3.3 3.3 96.7

ACTIVE 1 3.3 3.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.12 shows the emotions felt of the participants while answering the study
in which 36.7% answered that they felt interested, 13.3% were excited and strong, 10%
were upset and the rest of the emotions have 3.3%.
This means that majority of the students felt interested while participating in this
study.
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Graph 3.12 shows the percentage results of the answers of the senior high
school students regarding the emotions that they’ve felt while participating in this
study.
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Table 3.13. QUESTION #6: WHAT IS YOUR POLITICAL VIEW?

Valid VERY LIBERAL 6 20.0 20.0 20.0
LIBERAL 17 56.7 56.7 76.7
SOMEWHAT LIBERAL 4 13.3 13.3 90.0
MODERATE 3 10.0 10.0 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 3.13 shows the political view of the students wherein 56.7% answered that
they are liberal, 20% are very liberal, 13.3% are somewhat liberal and lastly, 10% has
moderate political view.
This means that majority of the students’ political view are Liberal.
Graph 3.13 shows the percentage results regarding the political views of
the senior high school (HUMSS) students.
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Further discussions will talk about the results of the respondents regarding
the activities they are engaged in relation with politics during the past 12 months.
Table 4.14. Question letter A: Contributed money online to a candidate

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 26 86.7 86.7 86.7
LESS FREQUENT 4 13.3 13.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
Table 4.14 shows the percentage results of the answers of the senior high school
students regarding question letter a, “contributed money to an online candidate?” in which
86.7% answered never and 13.7% answered less frequent.
This means that majority of the students never contributed money online to a candidate.
Graph 4.14 shows the percentage results about the senior high school students’
money contribution to an online candidate.
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Table 3.15. Question letter B: Started or joined a political group, or group

supporting a cause on a social networking site.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 20 66.7 66.7 66.7
LESS FREQUENT 8 26.7 26.7 93.3
LESS OCCASIONALLY 2 6.7 6.7 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter b, “started or joined a political group, or group
supporting a cause on a social networking site?” in which 66.7% answered never, 26.7%
answered less frequent and 6.7% answered less occasionally.
This means that majority of the students never started or joined a political group, or group
supporting a cause on social networking site.
participation on a political group, or group supporting a cause on social networking site.
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Table 3.16. Question letter C: Signed up as a “friend” of any candidates

on a social networking site.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 15 50.0 50.0 50.0
LESS FREQUENT 11 36.7 36.7 86.7
FREQUENTLY 1 3.3 3.3 96.7
VERY FREQUENTLY 1 3.3 3.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter c, “signed up as a friend of any candidates on a social
networking site?” in which 50% answered never, 36.7% answered less frequent, 6.7%
answered less occasionally and 3.3% answered frequently and very frequently.
This means that majority of the students never signed up as a friend of any
candidates on a social networking site.
involvement as a friend of any candidates on a social networking site.
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Table 4.17. Question letter D. Signed up online for any volunteer activities
related to a political campaign, like helping to register voter or get people to the
polls.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 19 63.3 63.3 63.3
FREQUENTLY 1 3.3 3.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter d, “signed up online for any volunteer activities related to a
political campaign, like helping to register voters or get people the polls?” in which 63.3%
answered never, 26.7% answered less frequent, 6.7% answered less occasionally and 3.3%
answered frequently.
This means that majority of the students never signed up for any volunteer activities
related to a political campaign, like helping to register voter or get people the polls.
involvement as an online volunteer related to political campaigns.
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Table 4.18. Question letter E. Customized a web page to display new political or
campaign information.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 24 80.0 80.0 80.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter e, “customized a web page to display new political or
campaign information?” in which 80% answered never, 16.7% answered less frequent and
3.3% answered less occasionally.
This means that majority of the students never customized a web page to display new
political or campaign information.
participation in customizing a web page to display political or campaign information.
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Table 4.19 Question letter F: Attended a political meeting, rally, or speech.

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 14 46.7 46.7 46.7
FREQUENTLY 4 13.3 13.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter f, “attended a political meeting, rally or speech?” in which
46.7% answered never, 20% answered less frequent and less occasionally, 13.3% answered
frequently.
This means that majority of the students never attended a political meeting, rally or
speech.
participation in attending political meeting, rally or speech.
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Table 4.20. Question letter G: Worked for a political party or candidate.

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 21 70.0 70.0 70.0
LESS FREQUENT 9 30.0 30.0 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter g, “worked for a political party or candidate?” in which 70%
answered never and 30% answered less frequent.
This means that majority of the students never worked for a political candidate or party.
participation as persons working for a political party or candidate.
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Table 4.21. Question letter H: Shared photos, videos, or audio files online that
relate to politics.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 8 26.7 26.7 26.7
LESS FREQUENT 11 36.7 36.7 63.3
FREQUENTLY 6 20.0 20.0 96.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter h, “Shared photos, videos, or audio files online that relate to
politics?” in which 26.7% answered never, 36.7% answered less frequent, 13.3% answered less
occasionally, 20% answered frequently and 3.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently shared photos, videos or audio
files online that relate to politics.
participation in sharing photos, videos or audio files online that relate to politics.
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Table 4.22. Question letter I: Forwarded to someone else’s political commentary or

writing, or political audio or video to others.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 11 36.7 36.7 36.7
LESS FREQUENT 12 40.0 40.0 76.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter i, “Forwarded to someone else’s political commentary or
writing, or political audio or video to others?” in which 36.7% answered never, 40% answered
less frequent, 13.3% answered less occasionally, 6.7% answered frequently and 3.3%
answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently forwarded someone else’s
political commentary or writing, or political audio or video to others.
participation in forwarding someone else’s political commentary or writing, or political audio or
video to others.
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Table 4.23. Question letter J: Posted comments, queries, or information about

politics I an online discussion forum, blog, social networking site, or Web site of any
kind.
Cumulative
Valid NEVER 13 43.3 43.3 43.3
FREQUENTLY 3 10.0 10.0 93.3
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter j, “Posted comments, queries, or information about politics in
an online discussion forum, blog, social networking site, or Web site of any kind?” in which
43.3% answered never, 30% answered less frequent, 10% answered less occasionally and
frequently and 3.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students never posted comments, queries, or
information about politics I an online discussion forum, blog, social networking site, or Web site
of any kind.
participation in never posting comments, queries, or information about politics I an online
discussion forum, blog, social networking site, or Web site of any kind.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Further discussions will talk about the results of the respondents regarding
the types of media consumed regarding the past 30 days.
Table 4.24. Question letter K: National broadcast TV news programs

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 4 13.3 13.3 13.3
FREQUENTLY 6 20.0 20.0 86.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter k, “National broadcast TV news programs?” in which 13.3%
answered never, 26.7% answered less frequent and less occasionally, 20% answered frequently
and 13.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students both less frequently and less occasionally
consumed national broadcast TV news programs during the past 30 days.
Graph 4.24 shows the percentage results about the senior high school students’ usage of
national broadcast TV news programs.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.25. Question letter L: Local broadcast TV news programs

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 5 16.7 16.7 16.7
FREQUENTLY 8 26.7 26.7 90.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter l, “Local broadcast TV news programs?” in which 16.7%
answered never, 30% answered less frequent, 16.7% answered less occasionally, 26.7%
answered frequently and 10% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently consumed local broadcast TV
news programs during the past 30 days.
local broadcast TV news programs.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.26. Question letter M: Cable TV news programs

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 3 10.0 10.0 10.0
LESS FREQUENT 13 43.3 43.3 53.3
LES OCCASIONALLY 5 16.7 16.7 70.0
FREQUENTLY 7 23.3 23.3 93.3
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter m, “cable TV news programs?” in which 10% answered
never, 43.3% answered less frequent, 16.7% answered less occasionally, 23.3% answered
frequently and 10% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently consumed cable TV news
programs during the past 30 days.
usage of cable broadcast TV news programs.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.27. Question letter N: Print newspaper

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 7 23.3 23.3 23.3
LESS FREQUENT 13 43.3 43.3 66.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter n, “print newspaper?” in which 23.3% answered never,
43.3% answered less frequent, 26.7% answered less occasionally, 3.3% answered frequently
and very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently consumed print newspaper
during the past 30 days.
printed newspaper.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.28. Question letter O: A news organization’s website

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 1 3.3 3.3 3.3
LESS FREQUENT 12 40.0 40.0 43.3
FREQUENTLY 9 30.0 30.0 96.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter o, “a news organization’s website?” in which 3.3% answered
never, 40% answered less frequent, 23.3% answered less occasionally, 30% answered
frequently and 3.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently consumed a news organization’s
website during the past 30 days.
a news organization’s website.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.29. Question letter P: Blogs or personal sites

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 3 10.0 10.0 10.0
FREQUENTLY 12 40.0 40.0 90.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter p, “blogs or personal sites?” in which 10% answered never,
20% answered less frequent and less occasionally, 40% answered frequently and 10%
This means that majority of the students frequently consumed blogs or personal sites
a blogs or personal sites.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.30. Question letter Q: Late-night comedy programs

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 5 16.7 16.7 16.7
FREQUENTLY 9 30.0 30.0 90.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter q, “late-night comedy programs?” in which 16.7% answered
never, 13.3% answered less frequent, 30% answered less occasionally and frequently, 10%
This means that majority of the students less occasionally and frequently consumed late-
night comedy programs during the past 30 days.
late-night comedy programs.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.32 Question letter S: Cable comedy programs

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 4 13.3 13.3 13.3
FREQUENTLY 7 23.3 23.3 80.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter s, “cable comedy programs?” in which 13.3% answered
never, 26.7% answered less frequent, 16.7% answered less occasionally, 23.3% answered
frequently and 20% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students less frequently consumed cable comedy
programs during the past 30 days.
cable comedy programs.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.33. Question letter T: Social media sites (e.g. Twitter, Facebook,
Instagram)
Cumulative
FREQUENTLY 4 13.3 13.3 26.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter t, “social media sites (facebook, twitter, Instagram)?” in
which 6.7% answered never, 3.3% answered less frequent and less occasionally, 13.3%
answered frequently and 73.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students very frequently consumed social media sites
such as facebook, twitter and instagram during the past 30 days.
usage of social media sites such as facebook, Instagram and twitter.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.34. Question letter U: Looked at internet memes

Cumulative
FREQUENTLY 12 40.0 40.0 53.3
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter u, “looked at internet memes?” in which 3.3% answered
never and less occasionally, 6.7% answered less frequent, 40% answered frequently and 46.7%
This means that majority of the students very frequently looked at internet memes
Graph 4.33 shows the percentage results about the senior high school student’s action in
looking at internet memes.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.34. Question letter V: Shared internet memes

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 3 10.0 10.0 10.0
FREQUENTLY 12 40.0 40.0 56.7
VERY FREQUENT 13 43.3 43.3 100.0
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter v, “shared internet memes?” in which 10% answered never,
6.7% answered less occasionally, 40% answered frequently, 43.3% answered very frequently.
This means that majority of the students very frequently shared internet memes during
the past 30 days.
sharing internet memes.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Table 4.35. Question letter W. Created internet memes

Cumulative
Valid NEVER 20 66.7 66.7 66.7
Total 30 100.0 100.0
students regarding question letter v, “created internet memes?” in which 66.7% answered
never, 13.3% answered less occasionally, 6.7% answered frequently, 13.3% answered very
frequently.
This means that majority of the students never created internet memes during the past
30 days.
creating internet memes.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Chapter 5
Summary, Conclusions, Implications and Recommendations
Chapter 5 consists of four parts: (1) Summary, (2) Conclusions, (3) Implications,
and (4) Recommendations.
Part One, Summary, presents the salient points and important findings of the
study.
Part Two, Conclusions, presents the generalization derived from the result of the
study.
Part Three, Recommendations, presents suggestions based on the findings of the
present study.
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Summary
Summary of the Research Design. This Braun and Clarke (2006) qualitative
descriptive-thematic analysis study was conducted to determine the themes being used
by Senior High School (HUMSS) students of Colegio de San Jose, Basic Education
Department regarding the study, “The Rise of Meme Culture to Students as a Satirical
Tool to Promote Socio Political Awareness”.
Three questions were asked: “What is meme?”, What is meme culture?’’ and “Can
memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness?”. The answers to
these questions were associated with themes that they can use in describing or defining
Meme, Meme Culture and its effectivity as a satirical tool to promote socio political
awareness.
A Descriptive Data Analysis was also provided to describe the basic features of the
study, regarding the awareness of the senior high school (HUMSS) students to the rise of
meme culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political awareness, their perceptions,
the activities they are engaged in as well as the type of media they’ve consumed when
dealing with memes. This includes a graph to show a clear representation of the
percentage results and measures of central tendency such as the mean, mode and the
standard deviation.
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Summary of the Findings
The following were the important findings of the study:
1. In the first question, “What is meme?”, the answers of the respondents were
categorized into five themes such as (1) “A meme is a visual graphic intended to
give message and entertain the audience”: knowing the intention of memes in a
form of picture, (2) “A meme is a funny and an interesting picture which easily
catches the attention of netizens”: discovering the appeal of memes to the
audience, (3) “A meme is always famous and trending in different social
networking sites”: how memes are considered as influential in different social
media platforms, (4) Theme 4. “A meme is what we always share on different
social media platforms”: why netizens are fond of sharing memes and (5) “A meme
is a cultural transmission”: meme as a part of a netizen’s daily routine.
2. In the second question, “What is meme culture?”, the answers of the respondents
were categorized into five themes such as (1) “Meme Culture as part of a netizen’s
everyday lives”: knowing the reasons why memes are already considered as part
of a netizen’s daily routine, (2) “Meme Culture and their relationship between
people/netizens”: discovering the connection of memes to the audience,
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(3) “Meme Culture is made to make fun or entertain someone or something on a
certain situation”: how can memes describe someone or a situation in a manner
that is either to entertain or mock, (4) “Meme Culture as a major contributor to
modern day slangs”: why memes tend to create and popularize new languages
and (5) “Meme Culture as influential and trends rapidly regarding a certain
situation”: meme being devastatingly popular and conforming.
3. In the third question, “can memes serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio
political awareness?”, majority of the respondents answered YES because of the
reasons that memes are very funny and it can easily catch the attention of the
netizens. Also, using satire in memes through funny captions can relay information
wittingly as well as promote awareness in politics. Memes can also enhance civic
engagement or participation within netizens by widespread sharing through
different social media platforms. Lastly, students are fond of using social media in
which memes can be seen everywhere. Therefore, memes rapidly trend which can
also mean that the dissemination of information or message involving politics will
become embracing and extensive. For those who answered NO, memes cannot
serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political awareness since it is unethical.
The use of satire involves mocking and making fun of others. Satirical memes can
also lead to fake news and biases.
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4. The Descriptive Data Analysis of the study provides the following summary on the
awareness, perception, activities engaged in and the types of media consumed in
dealing with political memes of the senior high school (HUMSS) students regarding
the study in which majority of the senior high school (HUMSS) students who
participated in the study were 17 years old, female, and in high school. Many of
them were not involved on any tasks before answering the survey. They also
considered memes as both entertaining as well as see it on a serious aspect. For
the political ideology, many of them perceived memes as liberal in a sense that
meme creators have exercised their freedom to make a meme out of pictures
involving politics. While participating in the study, majority of them were feeling
interested Many of them also have a political ideology of being liberal.
For the activities engaged, many students never contributed money to a
candidate. Whereas, they never started or joined a political group supporting a
cause on social networking site. Also, majority of them never signed up as a friend
of any candidates on a social networking site. They never signed up for any
volunteer activities related to a political campaign, like helping to register voter or
get people the polls and many of them never attended a political rally or speech.
Majority also answered that they less frequently shared photos, videos or audio
files online that relate to politics.
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Also, many of them less frequently forwarded someone else’s political commentary
or writing, or political audio or video to others and they never posted comments,
queries or information about politics in an online discussion forum, blog, social
networking site or web site of any kind.
For the media consumed during the past 30 days, majority of the students
both less frequently and less occasionally consumed national broadcast TV news
programs during the past 30 days. Also, they less frequently consumed local
broadcast TV news programs and less frequently consumed cable TV news
programs. Many students less frequently consumed print newspaper and they less
frequently consumed a news organization’s website. Whereas, many students
frequently consumed blogs or personal sites. They both less occasionally and
frequently consumed late-night comedy programs. Students also less frequently
consumed broadcast dramatic programs. Majority of the students answered that
they less frequently consumed cable comedy programs. Also, they very frequently
consumed social media sites such as facebook, twitter and Instagram as well as
they very frequently looked at internet memes. Many of them also shared internet
memes very frequently and lastly, many students never created internet memes.
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Conclusions
Based on the foregoing findings, the following conclusions were drawn:
1. Respondents’ viewed and defined meme as a visual graphic intended to give
message and entertain the audience, funny and interesting picture which easily
catches the attention of netizens, famous and trending in different social
networking sites, what we always share on different social media platforms
and a cultural transmission: “A meme in a form of picture is a humorous and
a funny version of certain things. It is also entertaining which can easily catch
a netizen’s attention.”
2. Meme Culture is a part of everyday lives, a relationship of memes between
people and netizens and a major contributor to modern day slangs. The culture
of meme is also influential and trends rapidly regarding a certain situation:
“Meme culture’s influence to the people in social media is important because
it doesn’t only entertain but is also one of the means to deliver or relay a
message.”
3. This study sought to understand that memes are indeed interesting that can
easily attract the netizens. Also, using satire in memes through captions can
relay information wittingly as well as promote awareness in politics. Memes
can also engage netizens to participate in civic or political discussion.
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Students are fond of using different social media platforms such as facebook,
Instagram and twitter in which memes can be seen everywhere that is why it
trends rapidly which can also mean that the dissemination of information or
message involving politics will become embracing and extensive. On the other
hand, memes cannot serve as a satirical tool in promoting socio political
awareness since it lacks on values. The use of satire to insult or ridicule
someone or something is unethical. Satirical memes may trigger the spread of
fake news and political biases.
4. This study represents therefore that the students considered memes as both
entertaining as well as see it on a serious aspect. For the political ideology,
many of them perceived memes as liberal in a sense that meme creators have
exercised their freedom to make a meme out pictures in order to entertain
netizens. They also find this study unique, entertaining in which it increases
their curiosity regarding the rise of meme culture with the use of satire to
promote socio political awareness and they embrace freedom and tolerance in
government. For the activities engaged, many students were more focused on
their studies rather than engaging themselves in political concerns. They don’t
have enough resources or time to support any candidates online. As senior
high school students, they have a lot to do and to accomplish in line with their
studies.
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They also don’t want to involve themselves to avoid bashing since there might
be misunderstanding regarding differences in opinions or ideologies. For the
media consumed during the past 30 days, students are still engaged in
watching national broadcast TV programs while some are already drawn in
social media platforms in gathering news information. They were also fond of
reading online articles as it is more accessible and easier as well as they prefer
using social networking sites such as facebook and twitter in gathering news
rather than opening a news organization’s website. They were also fond of
watching comedy programs for their own pleasure or entertainment since they
can already access cable comedy programs online. Lastly, students are drawn
in using these social media platforms for the purpose of entertainment and for
the fact that memes can be seen everywhere such as in facebook, instagram
and twitter. They also tend to share it since they can relate to it, they were
entertained and they wanted to spread or disseminate information.
Implication
For Theory. The result of the study implied Rosa-Carillo’s Language of Memes
which is understood as a “Digital-Content” that is visual, modular and capable of
expressing opinions. It travels across social media and it can be shared easily and
propagate quickly.
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It also thrives on remix while encouraging it as an essential expression of Participatory
Culture. It doesn’t only samples general culture as Source Material but also offers itself
up as source material of its own.
It is a visual, succinct and capable of inviting active engagement by users who
encounter the digital content that exhibits said characteristics. Furthermore, since the
specific type of engagement that The Language of Internet Memes depends on is in fact
remix, it recognized this set of conventions as the proverbial point of convergence where
remix and Internet Memes meet; it is the point of convergence that seeks to make
relevance in terms of Art and Visual Culture Education. Moreover, if The Language of
Internet Memes is approached as a creative, art-like endeavor then it provides an ideal
context to initiate explorations into it and the literacy required to actively engage online
visual culture.
The result of the study also implied Huemer’s Theory of Perception which lays out
an account of perception that supports a version of direct realism. He states two main
theses: that perception is direct awareness of external reality, and that it leads to non-
inferential knowledge of that reality. The second claim requires that the first be adequately
defended. His theory hinges on the difference between direct and indirect awareness.
Gricean’s Maxim of Conversation was also implied in the result of the study which
includes the maxim of quantity, where one tries to be as informative as one possibly can,
and gives as much information as is needed, and no more.
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The maxim of quality, where one tries to be truthful, and does not give information that
is false or that is not supported by evidence. The maxim of relation, where one tries to be
relevant, and says things that are pertinent to the discussion. The maxim of manner, when
one tries to be as clear, as brief, and as orderly as one can in what one says, and where
one avoids obscurity and ambiguity.
For Practice. The result of the study indicated that internet memes serve as a
humorous vehicle for which creators can communicate a variety of messages.
Interestingly, the merging of memes and politics produces a unique yet wide audience
that is either looking for entertainment, political commentary, or both. It represents a
fusion between the realities of state of the nation and a phenomenon that began as light-
hearted, humorous imagery. Additionally, the act of participatory media and political
meme creation is nonpartisan, which explains the vastness of the audience and variety of
participants who hold values from every corner of the socio-political scope. Furthermore,
the ability of anonymity on social media allows for the spread of the wide variety of values,
which explains the hostility presented in the survey.
Overall, the result of this study had shown that satirical political memes emerged
as serving a variety of purposes. It is an effective source of political criticism, allowing
users to employ their creativity and critical thinking to actively engage with politics. The
value of mainstream culture for politics lies not on rationality, but on the affect that it
invokes, which is crucial to developing and maintaining strong political engagement.
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Engagement includes everyday tasks, like posting memes and commenting on satirical
texts online. Although commonly dismissed as mundane and pointless, satirical memes
are a pure form of bottom-up expression and an effective source of political criticism.
Political memes satirizing politics are a form of public commentary; as a medium for self-
expression, memes are employed to satirize politics while also providing entertainment.
Such memes seem to carry other implications for politics as well; due to their nature, they
are easy to create, consume and spread. As a result, they provide entry points to the
complex realm of politics, making it more inclusive, more accessible, and more democratic.
For this, the students should enhance their social literacy to help them gain a better
understanding on satirical memes involving politics. They should be aware of its elements
and view memes in a more critical way.
Recommendations
In the light of the findings and conclusions of the study, the following
recommendations were proposed for the students:
The influence of meme culture as a satirical tool to promote socio political
awareness can be improved by recommending the students to be open-minded, ethical
and become a critical thinker. They should avoid having biases regarding the issues
concerned and they should try to look on a practical sense.
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It is also recommended and a must that before netizens share a particular meme,
they should check whether the information depicted is accurate, factual and reliable in
order to avoid the spread of fake news. They should explore more closely on the
relationship between personality and political action in relation to meme’s influence since
they are likely to be influenced by political internet memes regarding their thinking and
awareness of politics and political participation.
Student’s academic performance and awareness in politics can be improved by
recommending social science or social studies teachers to include the use of memes in
their lessons as a teaching strategy in order to enrich the student’s content knowledge of
the subject as well as it can easily make them attentive and participative during
discussions.
Schools are also recommended to conduct seminars, trainings, open forums and
workshops to students involving the different netiquettes when using the internet or social
media and on how to distinguish factual news from fake news in a form of memes by
learning and analyzing the discursive strategies and the message it depicts so that
students will become more careful in sharing memes as well as to avoid
misunderstandings.
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REFERENCES
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
APPENDICES
COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE
SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
THE RESEARCHERS’ CURRICULUM VITAE

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COLEGIO DE SAN JOSE

Member: Daughters of Charity- St. Louise de Marillac Educational System

THE RISE OF MEME CULTURE TO STUDENTS AS A SATIRICAL TOOL TO

PROMOTE SOCIO POLITICAL AWARENESS

The Faculty of the Basic Education Department

Colegio de San Jose

Jaro, Iloilo City

Of the Requirements in the Subject Research

Ace Kenneth B. Ortigas

Maries Anne S. Aguacito

Krezel Joy S. Forro

_________________________ MS. HONEYLEN MAE B. CASABUENA

Date Research Adviser

_________________________ MS. NOEME JUTAJERO

Date Coordinator, Senior High School

School, Humanities and Social Sciences.

__________________________ DR. JERLYN D. PAMA

Date Principal, Senior High School

Ace Kenneth B. Ortigas

Maries Anne S. Aguacito

Krezel Joy S. Forro

“A meme in a form of picture is a humorous and a funny version of certain things. It is

Ace Kenneth B. Ortigas

Maries Anne S. Aguacito

Krezel Joy S. Forro

Introduction to the Study

Chapter 1 is made up of five parts: (1) Background and Theoretical Frameworks

support of the study.

for research and develop appropriate research questions and methodology.

Part Four, Definiton of Terms, defines conceptually and operationally the

important terms and the key variables used in the study.

respondents, research design, variables, research instrument, and statistical tools.

Background and Theoretical Framework of the Study

Memes are “self-replicating units of culture” (Dawkins, 1999), or “multimodal

symbolic artifacts created, circulated, and transferred by countless mediated cultural

through remixes and commentary and spread through homogeneous communities

project, though, is on political memes.

thesis, then, is on specific category of political memes, that of satirical user-generated

Internet memes therefore expand the range of participatory options in

decision to share political content is often accompanied by concerns around self-

The purpose of the study is to investigate the influence of meme culture as a

students towards memes and the socio political issues.

Theoretical Framework of the Study

This study is anchored using the following theories: Rosa-Carillo’s Language of

Memes, Huemer’s Theory of Perception and Gricean’s Maxim of Conversation.

According to Carillo (2015), the Rosa-Carillo’s Language of Memes is understood

as a “Digital-Content” that is visual, modular and capable of expressing opinions. It is a

It thrives on remix while encouraging it as an essential expression of Participatory

up as source material of its own.

It is a visual, succinct and capable of inviting active engagement by users who

Internet Memes is approached as a creative, art-like endeavor then it provides an ideal

perception is direct awareness of external reality, and that it leads to non-inferential

awareness, he states, one’s awareness is of x, but only by means of his awareness of

gas in the tank.

Direct awareness, by contrast, is unmediated by such a secondary awareness. In

transmits the authority of the direct awareness to the indirect.

According to him, there are Three Elements of Perception: a Perceptual