What is an Activist Hoax?
A hoax is a prank or joke – and for activists, it’s a joke with a serious point. It builds off of the popularity of whatever you are poking fun at to bring your message to a larger audience.
Examples of Hoaxes: General Electric announced it would return its illegitimate 3.2B tax refund – except, that announcement was made by an NGO using GE branding. It was picked up by AP and quickly debunked, but the NGO was able to claim credit and make a very loud point.
How can you adapt this to peace advocacy? Here are some ideas:
We live in a culture that idolizes war, and gives zero attention to peace so there’s a lot we can do with the hoax technique:
Here are some ideas:
- Replace the front page of the NYTimes/your Campus Paper with a faux-“front page” made up of Peace News stories. At the footer of the page, include a line asking ‘when was the last time you really saw peace discussed in the news’ w/ info on joining your chapter.
- Announce that your campus is divesting from fossil fuels/defense industry/companies that use conflict minerals. In the announcement include the reasons why they are divesting. Then watch the university correct the announcement and explain their actions.