September 2020 kicked off with political signs in the headlines. In this case, though, the headlines weren’t about billboards or signs punctuating suburban subdivisions. Instead, they focused on the Biden/Harris campaign developing virtual signs that could be placed near your virtual residence in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Go where the people are, evidently — though much like the 2004 Bush/Cheney campaign’s infamous online sign generator, this does leave plenty of room for would-be pranksters to engage in acts of politically-inspired mischief. But the fact that a major party’s Presidential ticket is seeking real estate in the world of virtual real estate helps to illustrate the fundamental strangeness of this year’s election — and all the events that accompany it.
The process of researching and writing Political Sign made me think a lot about the ways in which we interact with the spaces around us. This comes with the territory described in the book: after all, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to put political signage in a place where it can’t be seen, regardless of what form it takes. One of the arguments I put forth in the book is that what we think of as a political sign goes far beyond a billboard, a bumper sticker, or a yard sign. Even so, one of the critical elements of a political sign is an audience, even if it’s a small one.
