Manners and Higher ed.

The image comes from one of my guilty pleasures - a meme themed blog on graphs and images (original found here). I've edited it for my more sensitive and/or delicate audience.

Much of what we teach - particularly in comp 1, seems to be life skills or manners: how to behave in a professional environment. Maybe that's a bit of what "analyzing your audience" means - thinking about how others will perceive you.

audience and voice: this blog

Just checked google analytics to see how much traffic this blog gets and from where. Interestingly, the summer has seen an increase in traffic, and though we've always gotten a strong following from Alaska - China has come on lately and been well represented in the audience. For that I say, "谢谢."

The increase in traffic has come despite the fact that I'm not teaching this summer - so the blog has no captive audience. There has been a shift in my educational philosophy regarding my posts this summer - summed up in the idea that, "the personal is pedagogical." I'll write more about that later.

Critiquing layout and design: Message fail?

This billboard faces the east-bound lane of I-70 just outside of Topeka, KS. My wife and I used to look forward to the last image on this board - it said, "Superpower your baby" and had a badly photoshopped greased/ cowlicked baby head on a superman body. The text sent a positive message re: breastfeeding and reading to your baby - both activities I support. The graphics just cracked us up. But the first few times we saw this board no one spoke.

Note this picture has been enlarged, enhanced and sharpened. Traveling at 70 mph, the fine print disappears. Try standing back from your screen to get the effect. I read a harsh message for working mothers.

I try to live by a philosophy of , "Don't attribute to malice what can otherwise be explained by incompetence," and I want to trust the KS Department of Health (who sponsored the message) has it's heart in the right place, but the look at the picture. Why a baby blue background? To blend with the sky and make it invisible (not effective from a marketing perspective), or to call to mind male babies? Why? And white lettering on a pale blue background?

"Being a mother doesn't stop from 9-5" has to sting any mother. Isn't working outside the home for a new mother an incredibly touchy subject - that should be approached carefully with sensitivity and tact? Not until stopping by the side of the road as close as I could get to take this picture did I even see the fine print about, "ask your employer for breastfeeding options." THAT should be the privileged text - that should pop - but it's nearly invisible. And why would someone look twice if the initial image slapped them with guilt trip?

I've only discussed this with one other person, but feedback would be appreciated - is this an epic fail, something worse, merely lame, or am I reading too much into this? I grew up in an art studio and used to have these sort of discussions. Is it effective for it's intended audience? I'd also appreciate anyone analyzing the photo/graphic.