Emily
Shuler
2/9/15
Com
327
Blog 1
Word Count: 603
Word Count: 603
I
selected a meme of Mitt Romney with the caption, “Binders… Full of Women.” In this meme Romney is shown speaking at the
second presidential debate against Obama in 2012 on CNN. The viral and somewhat offensive phrase,
“binders full of women” spread across the web instantly and manifested into a
popular meme. Not only has this meme
been launched throughout the internet, it has birthed “a hilarious tumblr
parody Twitter account @Romneys_Binder with more than 13,000 followers, a
Facebook fan page dubbed “Binders Full of Women,” which had amassed nearly 200,000
likes at time of writing, and the #bindersfullofwomen became a trending topic
on Twitter (Stern, 2012). Additionally,
“binders full of women became the “third-fastest rising search on Google during
the televised debate” (Stern, 2012). Most importantly, the implications of this
meme are deeper implications then just popularity on the internet.
With
women making up 50.8 percent of the population, at this time, Romney had been
consistently earning lower percentages of women’s votes compared to Obama
(Stern, 2012). The meme was produced in part because of the
answer that Romney gave in response to Katherine Fenton’s question. She asked, “In what new ways do you intend to
rectify the inequalities in the workplace, specifically regarding females
making only 72 percent of what their male counterparts earn?” (Stern, 2012). Romney claimed he “learned a great deal”
about the gaps in gender equality in the workplace” (Stern, 2012). Romney
stated:
“I went to my staff, and I said, ‘How
come all the people for these jobs are—are all men…’And I said: ‘Well, gosh,
can't we—can't we find some—some women that are also qualified?’ And—and so
we—we took a concerted effort to go out and find women who had backgrounds that
could be qualified to become members of our cabinet. I went to a number of
women's groups and said: ‘Can you help us find folks,’ and they brought us
whole binders full of women.” (Stern, 2012)
After
Romney’s answer, “binders full of women” became a popular and well-known
statement; it also became impactful as a meme. Although the meme is
entertaining, there is larger symbolism at play. In some ways the meme stands for inequalities
women experience; from income inequality, to the glass ceiling, as well as lack
of representation in government.
Additionally, this meme represents how out of touch with women Romney
and the Republican party are. Yet, the
symbolic weight this image carries resonates differently with different
audiences. In response to this meme,
Kate Segal, democratic
floor leader in the Michigan House of Representatives stated,
“To solve the
problem of pay inequality we don't need more 'binders full of women,' we need
more ballots full of women #BallotsNotBinders" (CNN Political
Unit). This symbolizes that the hype isn’t
just about Romney’s frivolous comment, it’s about women’s current stance and
their lack of representation in the public sphere. On the other hand, Republican Melinda
Henneberger “came to Mitt Romney’s defense in ‘She the People,’ saying the candidate
did hire a number of women during his first two years as governor “(Washington
Post, 2012). Yet, according to the
Washington Post, by the end of Romney’s term the percentage on women in his
cabinet dropped. This meme is most effective
to women because it involves their role in society and their role as a person
of power. Additionally, this meme is
most effective to women because it highlights how women are traditionally left
out of decision making in the public sphere; this meme is a perfect example of
this. The meme and saying “binders full
of women” will not be forgotten.
Bibliography
Romney's 'Binder full of women' comment spills onto
campaign trail. (2012, January 1).
Retrieved February 10, 2015, from http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/ decision2012/binder-full-of-women-comment-spills-onto-campaign-trail
Stern, M. (2012, October 17). Mitt Romney’s ‘Binders
Full of Women’ Comment Sets Internet Ablaze.
Retrieved February 9, 2015.
Unfortunately, the image didn't come through - and so your comments are more a description than an interpretation. This is an excellent example of how an embarrassing political gaffe can be turned into a meme in order to maximize attention to the comment.
ReplyDeleteRemember that the job of the rhetorical critic is to identify and classify the elements in the message, rather than comment on how the message reflects a particular perspective currently within the larger political context. Most likely, comments made by Romney will not continue to define the Republican Party - although memes will undoubtedly sprout immediately after any political mistake.
Be careful of making so many assumptions regarding the political records of these individuals. Is it the case that more women have worked for Barack Obama over the years than have worked for Mitt Romney? Kate Segal's tactic is very opportune, turning a political gaffe into a rallying cry. Again, the role of the rhetorical critic is to examine the message here. How many different ways has the "binders full of women" meme been deployed? How has this political call been targeted? This is a good start, but you need to take your time with your analysis. Keep digging.