Our society is becoming increasingly divided and our lives were once much simpler. At least that's the feeling you get when you look back at times when you could turn on the heating and hot water without having to think too much about it. (The fact that it is precisely this excessive consumer behavior that has led us into many problems will not be explained in detail here.)
Controversial discussions arise especially in times like these. And there are millions of posts on social networks about various topics, including controversial points of view. Isn't it difficult, especially now, to go public with a campaign like Spiegel's? Is the actual message on the posters and spots always clear enough, for example? B. to be clearly decoded by younger people too?
What does the mirror actually want to achieve?
With the cross-media campaign: “Never stop questioning” from November until the end of the year, Spiegel wants to show how important it is, in the current complex and unstable times, not to simply accept statements, but to constantly question them. Statements such as: “We are already doing enough for Ukraine” or “If you work a lot, you earn a lot.” will appear on large billboards, in print media and on social media.
The mirror makes it clear:
“The campaign motifs illustrate the outstanding importance of independent journalistic classification for the major issues of our time - climate change, war in Ukraine, social justice - by specifically using image-text scissors: shortened, naive or simply false statements contrast with impressive ones Press photos.”
Mirror
With the campaign, Spiegel would like to highlight how important independent investigative journalism is. And precisely because the mirror is a medium that provides orientation and is trusted by large parts of society, it is difficult to deal with exactly the statements made to the outside world.
But how are the campaign’s statements perceived in society?
It could e.g. B. the statement that we are already doing enough for Ukraine and are perceived by people on the “right” edge of society as if Spiegel now also represents their opinion. Because that's exactly what it's about. Unfortunately, statements are too rarely questioned and simply accepted as real. Our society has been incorrectly trained through decades of consumption of print media to assume that when a statement is published, it is true. The fact that this was not always true even before the digital age remains an open question.
Reactions to the campaign on Twitter
Here are some reactions to this poster:

“At first I thought it was a LEFT poster. But it's a good campaign by @derspiegel . #Questioning"
“Maybe I don’t understand something here?
We just took this picture in Frankfurt.
Der Spiegel says “WE ALREADY DO ENOUGH FOR UKRAINE” and in small letters “Never stop questioning” at the bottom.
I don't know what Spiegel does for Ukraine, maybe it does enough. But I honestly don't understand what kind of message such a billboard is trying to convey.Upd: I saw several other posters from Der Spiegel today. As already said in comments, this is meant to be sarcastic.”
“#SPIEGEL advertisement in the daily newspaper. If a politician from one of the democratic parties were to make such a statement, a #shitstorm unleashed on him and people would say that he was speaking out #NoAfD
“Okay – you probably understood exactly what the mirror wanted to question. Stupid when advertising achieves the opposite.”
“I don't understand him and at first glance I'm very shocked. Am I missing something?”
The reactions show that not everyone can expose the images and their statements as false statements. Some are shocked and perplexed by the campaign. Many people do research and, after researching, recognize the intended meaning behind it, but certainly not everyone does this. There are certainly many who simply leave the statements as they are and perhaps accept them as true.
“False statements work, despite correction”
Olivia Samnick from Übermedien criticizes that “the impact of such factually incorrect statements” should not be underestimated.
“False statements have an effect – even if you contradict them. They get stuck in our heads. Fake news has brute force and, once it is in circulation, is difficult to stop. Most media should be aware by now how difficult it is to correct misinformation - especially on the social web, where the “Spiegel” campaign will also have its impact.”
Overmedia
Conclusion: Even if it is a well-intentioned, attention-generating brand campaign that encourages people to think and wants to do good in society, there is still too much room for interpretation. This opens up the possibility of making the images produced popular among those parts of society that agree with the false statements and naive statements. They can promote racism, sexism and discrimination and lead to further exclusion.
Source:
Spiegel , Spiegel campaign , over-media
You might also be interested in: WhatsApp: Preventing the spread of fake news , fake news in the name of the Styrian Caritas boss Beiglböck
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Notes:
1) This content reflects the current state of affairs at the time of publication. The reproduction of individual images, screenshots, embeds or video sequences serves to discuss the topic. 2) Individual contributions were created through the use of machine assistance and were carefully checked by the Mimikama editorial team before publication. ( Reason )

