Watermelons and War

Social media posts about the humanitarian crisis in Gaza have been using the watermelon emoji. ICYMI, the watermelon has long been a symbol of protest for Palestinians, and the emoji is being used in place of the Palestinian flag. Like the flag, the emoji is also red, green and black.

But why is this happening and is it a signal of a bigger cultural shift? The short answer is ‘trust’ and it certainly feels like this isn’t specific to the Middle Eastern conflict…

This happened because people - especially those who are more aware of algorithms - want to to express their thoughts outside of what they perceive as a mainstream media that lacks trust and diversity of opinion.

As Forbes states, “Social media users are commonly using algospeak, code words used to avoid AI content moderation tools that flag user content for violating a social media apps rules, or which might be sensitive in nature.”

People are also looking for new ways to express their activism, like ‘filter for good’ on TikTok. This took advantage of the platforms relatively new Effect Creator Rewards, capturing the attention of millions around the world by allowing anyone to use a watermelon look on their camera. The creator - Jourdan - says she'll donate all the money she makes to charities in Gaza.

The lesson for marketers? It’s smart to stay up-to-date with algospeak, but it’s best to avoid it when promoting brands. Firstly, it can be mis-used as others have found out to their embarrassment and, secondly, anyone selling a product or service should want to play into the algorithm, not circumnavigate it.