Barack Obama’s Hope poster, designed by Shepard Fairey, first appeared as a street poster, and eventually was printed on anything a poster could be printed on as it came to represent the entire 2008 Obama campaign. The distinctive coloring and simplicity of the poster recall political propaganda of earlier years, while creating an iconic modern image for the politician.
The original poster designed by Fairey used the word “progress”, but was changed to say “hope” after Obama’s representatives pointed out the negative connotation of the original wording. Indeed, between the predominantly red-and-beige design, the bold portrait, and the idea of progress being foisted upon a country, the original poster might remind the viewer of USSR propaganda. Besides the historical connotation, promising people “progress” is saying far more than offering them “hope”. A popular poster boasting progress would have been regularly referenced by followers and critics of Obama alike to criticize what they saw as a lack of it. It also assumes that Obama knows how progress is done best and will accomplish his own vision alone, a connotation that runs contrary to the freedom so idealistically described in the governance of the United States. A message of hope, on the other hand, may be delivered without an expectation of explicit tangible results.
Obama was elected during the financial crisis of 2007-2008, when no one knew exactly how to fix the national economic meltdown that was quickly becoming global. Any promise of specific “progress” by Obama would be grounds for political debate, and would make him seem unfeeling to his constituents. A platform based around hope, however, is able to provide an ideal to every struggling American. In a time when everyone is suffering, the way to win their hearts is not by promising to make things better, but by empathizing. This is why Obama’s entire campaign based on hope (drawing from his 2006 ideas in The Audacity of Hope) appealed to the nation in a time of crisis, and softened the look of a bold poster, taking it from frighteningly radical to reassuringly different.
Excellent RCL blog Ellen! You really went in depth with your analysis. I enjoyed how you explained the meaning behind the word ‘hope’ and how you compared it to the use of the word ‘progress.’ Do you believe that the Obama followed through with his campaign, with his promise of hope?
What an amazing analysis of such an iconic poster! I never thought about how the message of “hope” was tied to the financial crisis, although I suppose that since I was seven at the time, political and economic thought weren’t at the forefront of my mind. In all seriousness though, I do think that this was a great job. A question about the Kairotic appeal of the piece though: do you think that the poster would have lost its effectiveness if the visual aspect was more involved, akin to something along the lines of the WWI and WWII propaganda posters, or do you think that the choice to use a more minimalist style was purely aesthetic?