This cartoon is by Mike Keefe, an American
political cartoonist whose most credited work has been published in The Denver
Post. In 2011, Keefe won the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning. He was
educated at University of Missouri-Kansas City and Stanford University. I found
his cartoons on the AAEC, or
the Association of American Editorial Cartoonist
In this cartoon, the issue of Internet use at a
young age is depicted. Keefe displays the harming effects of Mobile devices via
dialogue. There is one kid that 'texts' another, "Yo,
Dude, Waddup widat round thing next to your foot?". He
is referring to the soccer drawn next to him. Keefe illustrates a
confused child looking at the ball in awe in response to the text. The kid
obviously was too busy looking at his phone to even release it was
there. This demonstrates the carelessness and distraction brought on by
phones. Further, the fact that he thinks "?" shows that he is
unfamiliar with the object. A soccer ball, a symbol of the American childhood
for athleticism and playfulness, is
being identified as foreign, showing the loss of activeness and
childlike enthusiasm brought on by technology.
The 21st Century Playground
is adamant at displaying its purpose. Keefe wants to show that as
technology begins to effect younger and younger age groups, soon children will
no longer pursue regular "kid-friendly" activities. In my
opinion, the audience this is most relevant to is parents
of Elementary-aged kids. Keefe wants us to recognize that mobile devices
are more than just a piece of equipment; they offer a different world of social
media inside of them. If I were a parent, I would take the warning of this
image and not allow my child to be consumed by this world at such a young age.
It is scary to imagine that kids these days are more interested by screens than
they are of games and physical interactions with other kids.
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