What makes a good federal agency logo?
What makes a good federal agency logo?
Plus: A.I.-generated robocalls could be criminalized in time for the election
Hello, in this issue we’ll look at…
A.I.-generated robocalls could be criminalized in time for the election
Can a rebrand help East Palestine, Ohio?
What makes a good federal agency logo?
Scroll to the end to see: which famous coach is getting his own postage stamp.
A.I.-generated robocalls could be criminalized in time for the election
The Federal Communications Commission could soon ban robocalls made with voices generated by artificial intelligence.
Warning that A.I. was already scamming consumers, FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement last week the commission is “taking steps to recognize this emerging technology as illegal under existing law, giving our partners at State Attorneys General offices across the country new tools they can use to crack down on these scams and protect consumers.”
To take on A.I. robocalls, the FCC is using the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, a 1991 law signed by George H.W. Bush that puts restrictions on automatic telephone dialing systems and prerecorded voice messages. The law is the commission’s primary tool for combatting junk calls, the FCC says, and the commission’s rules require telemarketers to get prior express written consent from a consumer before robocalling them.
To better understand the implications of A.I., the FCC adopted a notice of inquiry last November. Among the risks the commission said it wants explored are the potential for disrupted elections and efforts to defraud consumers or induce panic, like by using fake emergency robocalls that mimic the voices of public officials or other trusted sources.
Concerns about the risks posed by A.I. are heightened after a robocall of an A.I.-generated voice pretending to be President Joe Biden discouraged callers from voting in New Hampshire last month. In Pennsylvania, a U.S. House candidate’s campaign used an A.I.-generated caller nicknamed “Ashley” that I spoke to late last year for a different use case. Unlike the faked Biden call example, “Ashley” indicates it’s an A.I. caller at the top of the call, and it’s used for voter outreach.
Civox, the A.I. company behind Ashley, didn’t respond to an email asking whether or not it’s concerned about the FCC’s efforts to ban A.I. robocalls.
Can a rebrand help East Palestine, Ohio?
One year after a Norfolk Southern derailment forced the some 5,000 residents of East Palestine, Ohio, to evacuate, the community rolled out a new logo and tagline.
Village Mayor, Trent Conaway, recently introduced East Palestine’s new logo and tagline, “Pride. Tradition. Progress.” The old logo, from before the toxic 38-car derailment blackened the sky, was a circular seal showing a sun with rays beaming over a field. The new logo shows hand-drawn village landmarks as the community focuses on economic development.
“We still want to keep our small-town feel, but it would be nice to have some more development coming to town,” Conaway said at a press conference.
WRL Advertising, a marketing firm in Canton, Ohio, that’s worked with clients including the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was tapped by East Palestine for the project in November. Working on an abbreviated timeline to deliver assets in time for the anniversary of the derailment, the firm did two discoveries and found that “a lot of people had the same things to say,” says WRL advertising president Jeff LeBeau.
“It’s a very small, close-knit, warm community that’s very supportive, working class. They also found that a lot of families are four or five generations in the area, so they’ve been going to the same schools and sports, a lot of small-town pride, an extremely resilient group of people,” LeBeau told me in an interview. “We really wanted to focus and try to get that message out.”
Researchers at Cleveland State University estimate the derailment resulted in an annualized household loss of $10.3 million, in addition to other costs like long-term health impacts, a loss of tax revenue, and costs associated with housing issues and loss of businesses.
“To me that stigma’s going to take time to wear off, but all we can do is do that positive promotion,” Keith Drabick, East Palestine’s fire chief, said at the press conference.
The logo is a public-facing symbol for a larger effort to revitalize the community’s economy. As part of its recompense, Norfolk Southern announced $500,000 for the village last August to hire a private-sector economic development consultant and develop a long-term economic development strategy. That strategy will include spotlights on individual businesses in town, traditional advertising, and efforts to reach consumers over the state border in Pennsylvania.
“We’re trying to get a marketing brand for our village so that people will want to come here,” Village Manager Chad Edwards told Spectrum News.
What makes a good federal agency logo?
Everyone knows NASA has some of the most beloved branding in the federal government, but what about the hundreds of other, lesser-known government agencies?
In a recent conversation on Reddit’s r/fednews board for federal employees and contractors, users shared their favorite logos and seals. Their list includes some that don’t usually get much love, showing how varied branding can be across the U.S. government.
The most upvoted mark in the thread is the Department of the Interior’s seal, which depicts a bison in front of a prairie landscape with mountains and a rising sun in the distance. The DOI manages 507 million acres of federal lands, including national parks and monuments, and it first used a bison in its seal in 1917.
The seal for the U.S. Transportation Command, showing a hippocampus—a mythical, winged seahorse—is the second-most popular. Using a creature that’s part horse, part bird, part fish is a nod to the command’s mission, which provides transportation services for the Department of Defense across land, air, and sea.
Other favorite logos in the thread are the Department of Education’s seal of an oak tree and rising sun, the emblem for Fish & Wildlife Service, and the eagle logo for the National Archives and Records Administration. Though that one is based on the stone eagles that adorn the National Archives building in Washington, D.C., one Reddit user compared it to Sam the Eagle, and the resemblance is uncanny.
While traditional seals are widely used in government, contemporary logos are popular, like for the Bureau of Reclamation, which uses a professional-sports-style illustration to depict a dam. Meanwhile, the National Ice Center, a multi-agency organization that monitors global sea ice, rolled out new branding in 2019 featuring a contemporary illustration of a polar bear and penguin on a seal.
Other favorite logos included that the Forest Service logo, a classic and suitable as a patch on the agency’s employees’ khaki uniforms. And the user who suggested the logo for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration called it “simple but also very relaxing.” The Army Corps of Engineers’ mark looks like an app icon.
In a separate conversation on r/fednews, users also discussed their least favorite federal agency logos, led by the wordmark for the Library of Congress. Designed by Pentagram and released in 2018, the mark gave the LOC a customizable, dynamic brand, but the concept didn’t catch on with federal workers who were more used to formal, governmental-looking seals and branding.
The seal for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office was dinged for the bent-looking neck position of its eagle, and the user who suggested the Federal Trade Commission seal as their least favorite mark wrote, “Once you see the clown face, it can’t be unseen.”
What are the best and worst federal agency logos in your opinion?
Have you seen this?
There’s a John Wooden stamp coming out. The UCLA men’s basketball coach appears on the stamp alongside players wearing the numbers 4 and 10, for Wooden’s four perfect seasons and the 10 national championships.
Pro-Biden super PAC set to spend up to $40 million amplifying Trump's legal woes. Unite the Country plans to spend upwards of $40 million starting in late spring focusing on Donald Trump’s mounting legal issues and his "threat to democracy.” [NBC News]
The only painting jointly created by the Beatles sold to the tune of $1.7 million. The painting, known as “Images of a Woman,” was created by the four members of the Beatles while on tour in Japan in 1966. [Artnet News]
History of political design
Obama bling pin (2008). The maker of the commemorative Obama O logo pin advertised its jewelry as “fun rhinestone pins for serious times.”
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Portions of this newsletter were first published in Fast Company.