Socially Awkward Penguin

2009

Date: 2009, photo origin 1996 National Geographic · Place: Reddit, photo by George F. Mobley for National Geographic · Figures: George F. Mobley, photographer · Anonymous Reddit user, format originator · Tags: Advice Animal, Reddit, National Geographic 01. An Adélie Penguin On A Blue Diamond The base image is a 1996 photograph by George F. Mobley for National Geographic showing a single Adélie penguin against an ice-blue diamond background. By 2009 Reddit users have isolated the bird on the diamond as an advice-animal template captioned with mundane social embarrassments. The format reaches saturation by 2011 on r/AdviceAnimals, spawning Socially Awesome Penguin (the diamond flipped to orange) and a dozen subspecies. 02. Copyright Letter From Getty In 2015 Getty Images, which licenses the National Geographic archive, sends settlement demands to German blogs that have reproduced Socially Awkward Penguin images, reportedly seeking hundreds of euros per use. The case prompts wide discussion of who, if anyone, owns a meme built on copyrighted material. No definitive ruling emerges. The template continues to circulate. Sources • KnowYourMeme, 'Socially Awkward Penguin' • Wired, 'Getty Hits Meme Lovers With Copyright Demands' (8 September 2015) • George F. Mobley, original photograph (National Geographic, 1996)