Persuasion in the Millennial Era: A Case Study of KONY 2012

Title: Persuasion in the Millennial Era: A Case Study of KONY 2012
Author: Lauren Hebing
Faculty Sponsor: Frank Nevius; Gavin Keulks
Date: 6/15/2018
Abstract: On March 5th, 2012, a video titled Kony 2012 was posted to YouTube by the nonprofit charity, Invisible Children Inc. (Invisible Children). Founder and director Jason Russell was the face and voice of the video which focused on indicted war criminal, Joseph Kony, and his rebel army, the LRA. The film quickly rose to stardom, reaching 100 million views in six days (Bopp, 2012). The sudden and intense spotlight led to scrutiny from professionals on the topic who proved the cause was not as legitimate and politically up to date as the video claimed. This pressure led to a very public mental-breakdown for Russell and a steep decline for Invisible Children as a whole...
Type: Text; Honors Thesis
Department: Honors Program
Keywords: Kony 2012; persuasion; millennial; viral media; viral marketing; internet; social media; marketing
Language: eng
Rights: Western Oregon University Library has determined, as of 06/01/2023, this item is in copyright, which is held by the author. Users may use the item in accordance with copyright limitations and exceptions, including fair use. For other uses, please ask permission from the author.; http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Identifier: honors_theses/165