If you've read a number of my articles by now, you'd probably realize I write about pretty serious topics. I like exploring the uncomfortable terrain and exposing the truth in a time where said concept can be bent twenty different ways. But, like any other struggling modern college student, I also turn to platforms like Twitter for memes. A lot of the memes that I think are funny are, in their simplest forms, absurd. So, I've decided to start a monthly series where I basically talk about a meme that I think dominates that respective month. Bear with me. Some of these articles will make absolutely no sense no matter how hard I try.
The meme for this month originates from Twitter and follows the voice behind the Amazon Echo, whether that'd be the normal full-size Echo, the mini Dot, or the newly-released Echo Spot. The default character is known as Alexa, and she is your basic voice command system. But between conspiracies about the government actually spying on you through the Alexa audio to falsified stories about how someone's Alexa suddenly turned evil, the entire system has basically turned into a joke.
Essentially, whenever someone is feeling a certain mood, they will say, "hey Alexa, play xyz" but in a tweet or text form. A lot of the time their command to Alexa is meant in a mock tone, so people will add "this is so sad" to the beginning of the statement to reflect something that, on the contrary, isn't sad at all. Let me provide an example.
Just a few days ago, Twitter was packed with updates from verified news networks regarding Larry Nassar, the ex-USA Gymnastics Doctor who is now a convicted serial child molester. He was accused of abusing young women for years on end during the Olympics while citing medical practices for his inappropriate approaches. The tweets showed how Nassar has come out saying he is being physically abused in prison. A viral quote to one of these tweets reads, "this is so sad. Alexa play IDGAF by Iggy Azalea." Obviously, the author of the tweet is implying that no one should really feel bad for Nassar given the horrible things he did to young women over the years.
Other tweets don't exactly instruct Alexa to play a song that relates to someone's reaction to an event or a person. For instance, just yesterday, a tweet surfaced explaining that activists are trying to introduce a #HeToo movement, which is supposed to focus on sexual assault instances against males. It is a play on the #MeToo movement, which has gained traction from well-known celebrities, such as Aly Raisman, who have been molested at some point before or during their careers. A user quoted the tweet and proceeded to write, "Alexa… when did 'me' become a gender." The tweet comments on the fact that #MeToo, at least in theory, encompasses all cases of sexual abuse, even though its leaders are predominantly female. So, #HeToo really isn't necessary. The inclusion of Alexa plays on the fact that people nowadays are always asking their smartphone/voice receiver questions because of the quick response build into these systems.
The concept behind the inclusion of Alexa in these tweets and posts, whether it'd be asking her to play a relevant song or asking her a question related to a headline, is relatively simple. Humans have long been mocking ridiculous developments and people, but technology now allows us to apply this mockery to our online lives with the devices we have grown so familiar with.
