If you work in social media, you already know how hard it is to resist a good trend. Case in point: the Taylor Swift + Travis Kelce engagement news—and the upcoming The Life of a Showgirl album release on Oct. 3. Moments like these invite meme marketing.
Cultural moments like this inspire brands to join the conversation, and for a university marketer, it’s tempting to jump in with a clever caption like “When you find the perfect major, it’s a love story” over a photo of the happy couple.
But here’s the catch: Most of these memes are built on copyrighted photos or celebrity likenesses, which can open your university up to a lawsuit.
In this post, we’re breaking down the dos and don’ts of meme marketing in higher education—so you can stay relevant, creative, and compliant all at once.
The Risk: Copyright Isn’t Optional
Most memes are born from copyrighted content: stock images, movie stills, celebrity photos, or even student-created work that’s gone viral. Using these without permission in an official university channel—whether it’s Instagram, TikTok, or a recruitment campaign—puts the institution at risk of copyright infringement.
Jack Appleby writes:
“If your meme uses legally licensed images, paid celebrity appearances, or original content that doesn’t infringe on anyone’s copyright, you’re golden! You’re above board, you’re making legal content, meme to your heart’s content!
If your meme uses copyrighted images or celebrities you have no relationship with? You’re putting your brand at risk of getting sued, because it’s not really legal.”
Think about the Swift/Kelce example: That Getty Images engagement photo you saw reposted everywhere? It doesn’t suddenly become free to use because it’s gone viral. If your admissions office drops it into a tweet about “finding your perfect campus match,” you’ve crossed into commercial use.
Why Fair Use Doesn’t Cover Most Higher-Ed Memes
Fair use is decided case by case, but two factors typically work against institutions:
- Purpose and character of the use
In higher ed, every post from an official university account is promotional by nature. Even if it’s not a paid ad, all content is tied to institutional goals, such as enrolling students, engaging donors, and strengthening reputation. That means a meme isn’t just fun content; it’s part of a commercial strategy. And the courts are clear: commercial use weighs heavily against fair use. - Amount and substantiality of the work used
Most memes lift an image wholesale and add a caption. That’s not enough transformation to make it a new, original work. For example, taking a Taylor Swift + Travis Kelce engagement photo and slapping on the text “When you find the perfect major” doesn’t reinvent the photo; it just repurposes it for recruitment messaging. From a copyright standpoint, that’s infringement, not parody. (And a post from a commercial brand can’t really count as parody anyway.)
It can be tempting to think “it’s just an organic tweet” or “this is harmless.” But legally, anything published on a university’s official social channels is seen as promotional. In practice, that means you’re “selling” your institution every time you hit post, even when the content is lighthearted.
Higher Ed Is Especially Vulnerable
Unlike small businesses or startups that might fly under the radar, universities are highly visible. That makes them attractive targets for copyright litigation.
Plus, lawsuits don’t just carry financial costs; they also risk brand damage and negative press.
With higher ed facing existing financial threats and political pressures, your institution doesn’t need the additional challenge of a legal battle (even if a photoshopped image of your mascot standing next to Taylor and Travis might get some good engagement).
Copyright Dos and Don’ts for Higher Ed Marketers
The good news is that pop-culture references and celebrity tie-ins aren’t entirely off-limits. There are smart, creative ways for universities to join the conversation while staying on the right side of copyright law. The key is knowing where the boundaries are.
Think of it this way: if you’re amplifying something that’s already been shared by the original creator (like Taylor Swift’s official Instagram post), you’re safe because you’re using the platform’s built-in sharing tools. But the moment you download, edit, or repurpose someone else’s copyrighted image for your own institutional content, you’ve crossed the line into infringement.
The best-performing social content for universities usually comes from their own culture, particularly content that features students and campus life,” says Bryanna Somers, a marketer with deep expertise in content strategy at Eduvantis. “That’s the kind of authentic storytelling no meme can compete with.”
Here’s a quick guide to help your team separate what’s acceptable from what could put your institution at risk:
Copyright Don’ts
- Don’t grab photos from Taylor Swift’s or Travis Kelce’s Instagram feeds to create your own branded post.
- Don’t use celebrity photos in posts or memes unless you own the rights.
- Don’t photoshop copyrighted images, such as by cutting out Taylor and Travis and pasting them onto your campus quad, or adding your mascot into the engagement photo.
- Don’t lift images from news articles. Media outlets likely paid for those rights, and reposting them without a license is infringement.
- Don’t use AI to generate or alter celebrity likenesses. AI tools don’t erase copyright obligations, and many are trained on copyrighted data.
One university made reference to the engagement by photoshopping their mascot onto a copyrighted photo of the engagement location. Another photoshopped Travis and Taylor onto their campus. Both were clever and well done, but they both technically violated copyright laws.
Copyright Dos
- Share a celebrity’s official post to your university’s story and add your own caption or sticker. That’s a platform-native share, which preserves rights.
- You can usually incorporate song lyrics into your content. (Lyrics are generally licensed to the platform.)
- Have fun depicting your own brand, mascot, or students in creative ways that play off the trend.
- Design original meme templates that nod to the cultural moment without borrowing actual celebrity likenesses.
- Reference the trend in text-only formats (tweets, LinkedIn posts, or captions) that use wordplay instead of images.
For example, Hofstra University made an homage to the Swift/Kelce engagement location by featuring a photo from their own campus with the text “So Hofstra” (a nod to Taylor Swift’s song “So High School,” which played over her announcement post).
Creativity + Boundaries Builds Trust
Social media is now a core part of institutional reputation. Protecting that reputation means balancing creativity with compliance.
Higher education marketers should treat meme marketing the same way they treat brand marks, logos, and mascots: with care, legal consideration, and respect for intellectual property.
“If you’re working in social, you shouldn’t make a single piece of content that’s even questionably illegal,” says Appleby. “We’re paid to be social media professionals, and being creative while being brand safe is part of the job.”
You don’t need Taylor and Travis to make your campus feel fun and relevant. You just need to spotlight what makes your own culture worth celebrating.
Let’s Shape a Smarter Social Strategy Together
At Eduvantis, we help colleges and universities stand out on digital platforms while protecting the brand and mitigating risk.
From campaign ideation to compliance best practices, we partner with institutions to ensure every post strengthens both reach and reputation.
Want to explore what that could look like for your campus? Let’s start the conversation.