Want to learn more about how “cute” furry friends and “uglier” sides of pop culture influence social media’s meme culture? If so, Jessica Maddox’s Pockrass Memorial Lecture, titled “Beyond the Attention Economy: The Ambivalence of Pets, Memes, and TikTok,” might be for you.

The hour-long lecture will discuss the two-faced reality of social media and the internet in today’s digital social context. Maddox, who is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama, will begin her presentation at 5 p.m. on Thursday, December 1, in the Foster Auditorium section of Paterno Library.

“Cute pet and animal images are staples of contemporary digital cultures, but the cultural tenets that inform their creation and circulation can often be wielded for more insidious means,” a release reads. “By specifically examining the role of attention in relation to pet and animal social media, Maddox will discuss the slippages between the cute and ugly of the contemporary internet.”

As a member of the department of journalism and creative media at the University of Alabama’s College of Communication and Information Sciences, Maddox’s work focuses specifically on digital media technology. Previously, her efforts received honors from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication and the International Communication Association. 

The lecture is free to the public with a Zoom option offered to those who can’t attend in person, though, pre-registration is required. To sign up for the virtual session, click here.