This is not that, and this doesn’t mean that!

Culture Jamming: Select and analyze an example.

I came across a very interesting spoof ad on the Internet. The advertisement (shown here) is an example of culture jamming: taking a pop culture phenomenon and incorporating a pop culture reaction to the product. The photo has a “classic” Absolut Vodka appeal, but the caption “Absolut impotence,” reveals a truth about Absolut Vodka; the truth being that Absolut Vodka doesn’t give you that powerful vibe that is produced through its advertisements, yet the complete opposite.
The first thing I thought about after seeing this ad, was Scott McCloud’s deconstruction of the painting “The Treachery of Images” in his book, “Understanding Comics.”
“Here’s a painting by Magritte called ‘The Treachery of Images.’ The inscription is in French. Translated, it means ‘This is not a pipe.’ And indeed this is not a pipe. This is a painting of a pipe. Right? Well, actually, that’s wrong. This is not a painting of a pipe, this is a drawing of a painting of a pipe. Nope. Wrong again. It’s a printed copy of a drawing of a painting of a pipe. Ten copies, actually. Six, if you fold the pages back. Do you hear what I’m saying? If you do, have your ears checked, because no one said a word” (McCloud, 24-25)
The way McCloud analyzes “The Treachery of Images,” is exactly how the spoof ad is analyzing Absolut Vodka. Absolut Vodka: Absolut impotence. The Absolut Vodka bottle in the photo is not a bottle; it’s a photo of a bottle; a photocopy of a photo of a bottle; a scan of a photocopy of a photo of a bottle, and so on.
This spoof ad is a means of bringing two opposites together to create a message for an audience who is attracted to the message, and the truth behind the message.

McCloud, Scott. Understanding Comics: The Invisible Art. New York: Kitchen Sink, 1993. Print.