Jerash Festival posters to get a makeover after social media backlash

By Rayya Al Muheisen - Jul 17,2022 - Last updated at Jul 17,2022

Image courtesy of social media

AMMAN — Following social media backlash, the Culture Ministry announced a change to the poster designs of the Jerash Festival of Culture and Arts.

Jerash Festival’s 36th edition will be held from July 28 to August 6 in Jerash.

Using the hashtag #JerashFestival, some social media users said that the posters “do not represent Jordan or the talent of Jordanian graphic designers”.

“The design is pretty much lousy,” Rand Hussein, a social media expert, told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

Hussein added that the posters represent an annual cultural event that attracts tourists and brings artists and performers from the region to perform in the Kingdom. “The festival is of a significant cultural value,” Hussein said.

“Jordan has some of the best graphic designers in the region,” Hussein added.

Bayan Odeh, a marketing and social media expert, told The Jordan Times that the brand image plays a significant role in representing the content.

“Jerash Festival is a brand name by itself,” Odeh said.

Odeh added that brands are increasing their presence on social media leading social media users to share their frustrations about poor experiences.

“The build-up of negative buzz on social media can have a significant impact on brands because social media is more public and moves faster than customer complaints via traditional channels,” Odeh added.

“Jerash Festival is a part of Jordanian heritage,” Mutasem Al Omor, a social media user wrote on his page.

Omor added that Jordanian graphic designers “would have done it for free to represent their country in a good manner”.

Hamza Saeed, another social media user, said “the posters are encouraging readers to play mix and match games” as the names of artists were not organised under the photos.

Social media user Mohammad Hatamleh thought that the posters were designed to have a negative marketing affect that would create free buzz.

“The exposure the festival got due to these ‘lousy’ posters was not bad,” Hatamleh said.

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