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For the majority of the 2010s, it felt like design was driven largely by a trend toward minimalism. 

Industrial Design celebrated the blank slab of the iPhone and MacBook Air. UI shifted away from skeuomorphism. Architecture awards recognized the sleek, minimalist designs of projects like SAANA’s Toledo Museum of Art Glass Pavilion. And iconic brands such as Starbucks, Burberry and BMW removed the excess and embraced the idea of simplicity in their visual identities and logos. 

We tend to view history as a straight line of progress: an evolution from primitive to modern. But, new technology often causes us to retrieve past forms of culture in unexpected ways.

In the mid-70s, philosopher Marshall McLuhan proposed the Law of Reversal, arguing that when a medium is pushed to its extreme limit, it doesn’t just break — it flips into its opposite. 

When we first moved to the Westside twelve years ago, the neighborhood was drastically different. Octane Coffee was the only restaurant within walking distance. It was us, a couple of legacy businesses focused on light industrial and retail, a few startup companies, and a smattering of art galleries that called the Marietta St. and Howell Mill corridor home.

As the neighborhood changed, we grew. From five employees to 25 employees to our current staff of nearly 100 incredible folks. So in the summer of 2019, when we received notice that our right to renew our office lease had been revoked by our landlord, we realized this was an opportunity for our company to find a location and a space that would provide us a home for years to come. 

Each year we launch holiday season campaigns. Most are Black Friday or Cyber Monday-focused, but they’re always fun, challenging and, of course, a bit stressful. But as marketers, that’s our job. It’s our prime time, so to speak.

However, we don’t always get to make the world a better place with our holiday campaigns. This year we do.

We had the honor and privilege of working with IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare) to launch their 2018 year-end giving campaign. 

Fake news is a hot topic at the moment, and while everyone is talking about it, the term has drastically different meanings to different people.

Before we can even begin to discuss how to combat the problem of fake news, we first must define what fake news is.

Let’s start by talking about what fake news is not.