2

Part two
Kalle Lasn
EXECUTION PLAN
• Co-founder of Adbusters
magazine

• Author of the books Culture Jam

and Design Anarchy

• Co-founder of the Adbusters

Media Foundation, which owns
the magazine.
He reportedly started Adbusters after an epiphany that there was
something profoundly wrong with consumerism. It happened in a
supermarket parking lot. Frustrated that he had to insert a quarter
to use a shopping cart, he jammed a bent coin in so that the machine
became inoperable. This act of vandalism was his first (quite literal)
"culture jam"—defined as an act designed to subvert mainstream
society.[1]
[1]Kalle Lasn, Culture Jam, Harpers Collins, 1999, page xv
His first book
—— Culture Jam

Lasn portrays consumerism as the

fundamental evil of the modern era.
He calls for a "meme war": a battle of
ideas to shift Western society away
from consumer capitalism.
His first book —— Culture Jam

Lasn, in his book, calls on the values of authenticity, individuality

and freedom of expression. He promotes the rebelling of the notion
that hierarchies can dictate people’s identities. Essentially, Lasn’s
concept of culture jamming calls upon consumers to value
experiences over possessions, while accusing marketing experts of
co-opting these values and "slapping a brand name on them".[2]
[2]Goldman, Debra. "Consumer Republic." ADWEEK Western Edition 22 Nov. 1999: 13. Academic OneFile. Web. 9
Mar. 2017
His second book——Design
Anarchy

The book, which in an introduction

to Lasn’s notion of culture
jamming, includes a compilation of
some of Adbuster’s greatest
moments.It invites readers to
become mindful of their patterns of
consumption.
His second book——Design Anarchy

In the book, Lasn claims that if members of a society can begin by

demarking themselves, then they are able to de-market certain
rituals imposed by commercial forces, consequently shifting the
ways in which the customer interacts with mass media, the way
information flows, and the ways in which meaning is produced,
ultimately leading to a break in commercial meaning and a shift to a
post-consumerist society.[3]
[3]Barber, John F. “Leonardo.” Leonardo, vol. 41, no. 2, 2008, pp. 193–194
Adbusters Media Foundation

It is a Canadian-based not-for-profit,
pro-environment[4] organization
founded in 1989 by Kalle Lasn and
Bill Schmalz in Vancouver, British
Columbia.

Hackett, Robert; Carroll, William (29 July 2006). Remaking

[4]

Media: The Struggle to Democratize Public Communication.

Adbusters Media Foundation

Adbusters has launched numerous

international campaigns, including
Buy Nothing Day, TV Turnoff Week
and Occupy Wall Street,[5] and is
known for their "subvertisements"
that spoof popular advertisements.
[5] "Résistance à l'Aggression Publicitaire"
Subvertising
Two billboards with the same original content;
the billboard on the right is an example of
subvertising after being vandalized.