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Since memes are constantly changing as they spread, drawing inferences from a population of memes as concrete digital artifacts is a pressing challenge for researchers. This article argues that meme selection and mutation are driven by a cooperative combination of three types of communication logic: wasteful play online, social media political expression, and cultural evolution. To illustrate this concept, we map Shepard Fairey\u2019s Obama Hope Poster as it spreads online. Employing structural rhetorical analysis, the study categorizes Internet memes on branching diagrams as they evolve. We argue that mapping these variations is a useful tool for organizing memes as an expression of the values and preferences embedded in online communities. The study adds to the growing literature around the subversive nature of memetic diffusion in popular and political culture.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1177\/1461444817735334","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2017,10,11]],"date-time":"2017-10-11T06:48:54Z","timestamp":1507704534000},"page":"2862-2879","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1177\/sage-journals-update-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":83,"title":["Memes as games: The evolution of a digital discourse online"],"prefix":"10.1177","volume":"20","author":[{"given":"Jens","family":"Seiffert-Brockmann","sequence":"first","affiliation":[]},{"given":"Trevor","family":"Diehl","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Vienna, Austria"}]},{"given":"Leonhard","family":"Dobusch","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"University of Innsbruck, Austria"}]}],"member":"179","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2017,10,10]]},"reference":[{"key":"bibr1-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1163\/156853702320281845"},{"key":"bibr2-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0018726711424227"},{"key":"bibr3-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1467-9760.2006.00235.x"},{"key":"bibr4-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0002716212451428"},{"key":"bibr5-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/CBO9781139198752"},{"key":"bibr6-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1016\/S1061-7361(96)90003-X"},{"key":"bibr7-1461444817735334","volume-title":"The Meme Machine","author":"Blackmore SJ","year":"2000"},{"key":"bibr8-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/105846099198596"},{"key":"bibr9-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2012.678878"},{"key":"bibr10-1461444817735334","volume-title":"Communication Power","author":"Castells M","year":"2009"},{"key":"bibr11-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1109\/TKDE.2007.48"},{"key":"bibr12-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2015.1084023"},{"key":"bibr13-1461444817735334","volume-title":"The Extended Phenotype: The Long Reach of the Gene","author":"Dawkins R","year":"1982"},{"key":"bibr14-1461444817735334","volume-title":"The Selfish Gene","author":"Dawkins R","year":"1989"},{"key":"bibr15-1461444817735334","volume-title":"Evolution and the Meaning of Life","author":"Dennett DC","year":"1995"},{"key":"bibr16-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2014.952659"},{"key":"bibr17-1461444817735334","volume-title":"Talking Politics","author":"Gamson WA","year":"1992"},{"issue":"2","key":"bibr18-1461444817735334","first-page":"32","volume":"2","author":"Gatherer D","year":"1998","journal-title":"Journal of Memetics"},{"key":"bibr19-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1093\/acprof:oso\/9780199744282.001.0001"},{"key":"bibr20-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.2307\/798843"},{"key":"bibr21-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/0002716215570549"},{"key":"bibr22-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/13691180801946150"},{"key":"bibr23-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1007\/978-0-387-30440-3_189"},{"key":"bibr24-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.31269\/triplec.v12i1.507"},{"key":"bibr25-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1109\/TMM.2011.2127463"},{"key":"bibr26-1461444817735334","volume-title":"Homo Ludens: A Study of the Play-element in Culture","author":"Huizinga J","year":"1980"},{"key":"bibr27-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/1369118X.2017.1291702"},{"key":"bibr28-1461444817735334","first-page":"69","volume-title":"Mass Communication and Political Information Processing","author":"Kosicki GM","year":"1990"},{"key":"bibr29-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1177\/1748048514568756"},{"key":"bibr30-1461444817735334","volume-title":"New Literacies: Everyday Practices and Social Learning","author":"Lankshear C","year":"2011","edition":"3"},{"key":"bibr31-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1145\/1557019.1557077"},{"key":"bibr32-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1080\/10510974.2015.1088048"},{"key":"bibr33-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1515\/text.1.1988.8.3.243"},{"key":"bibr34-1461444817735334","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0031819100001297"},{"key":"bibr35-1461444817735334","unstructured":"Milner RM (2013) Pop polyvocality: Internet memes, public participation, and the occupy Wall Street movement. 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