This Calls for an Investigation.

• March 22nd, 2006 • • type •

Hmm. I don’t agree with the The Partnership for a Drug-Free America’s new logomark. Call me crazy, but isn’t that an interrobang? I couldn’t find anything on their website that touted what this is all about, but then again I didn’t look very hard. Ha ha!

Hopefully my recent editorial rant will unearth some questions:

Dear PDFA,

I have a question not about the content of your campaign, but the content of your logo. Did you mean to use an interrobang for the newest incarnation? It seems somewhat inappropriate as the mark was invented for describing rhetorical questions or incredulity. I realize this probably isn’t a problem for the general public, but I read your new logo as “The Partnership for a Drug-Free America!?” or worse yet, “The Partnership?! For a Drug-Free America!?” It is as if one cannot believe that there is an organization for such a purpose or that such an organization is preposterous in its conception.

I can see that the intent might be to follow with the idea that if people have questions, you will happily provide them with an enthusiastic answer, but using an interrobang just screams out problems to me. Looking at the logomark from the standpoint of someone who doesn’t know what an interrobang is, having a questionmark featured so prominantly in your logo suggests to me that you’re not entirely sure of the content of your message or organization is!

Ultimately, I suppose the opinions of one type-nerd critiquing your organization’s graphic marks probably matter very little. Your recent commercials thankfully veer away from the preachy and irrelevant messages they have carried in the past. However, I might point out that visual graphics also have the power to identify and brand: is yours sending the right message?

More to follow, if I actually get a response!

2 Responses to ' This Calls for an Investigation. '

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1. thejessicat said,
   
   

   on March 23rd, 2006 at 9:24 am

   You’re right, it IS an interrobang! I didn’t know there was a word for the question mark/exclamation point combo, but I like it!
   I think perhaps they didn’t mean to put the question mark in there, but were trying to incorporate the P of Partnership into the exclamation point. Nonetheless, it came out looking like an incredulous statement.
   I hope they change the logo - that organization doesn’t need any more help to look like a joke. Just ask a high schooler.

2. Olivia said,
   
   

   on March 30th, 2006 at 12:13 am

   Well, it’s been about a week, so my urge to send them a hand-typed letter is growing. I’ve found that in an e-mail oriented world, a physical letter surprises the hell out of people so that they MUST respond. Neat, huh‽ (I just used an interrobang there, dunno if it will turn out on most folks’ computers. Though pointing that out just ruined the subtlety of my statement. Bah!)

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