Source: http://mediaoriente.com/tag/social-media/
Social media platforms are an extremely important broadcasting tool used by activists, the reach being far greater than traditional activist techniques such as flyers, letters to authorities, local protests etc. Online campaigning increases ‘publicity through diffusion of information to regional and global publics’ (Youmans, WL & York, JC 2012). Furthermore campaigning online gives activists a level of security, by remaining anonymous, the word can be spread without fear of retaliation.
“Social media in the Middle East and elsewhere undermine the territorial, coercive, and social underpinnings of despotic governments by exposing and breaking the state’s power to silence popular grievances and to criminalize opposition” (Youmans, WL & York, JC 2012). An example of this is the internationally famous 16 year old Palestinian, Farah Baker (https://twitter.com/Farah_Gazan), whose Twitter followers have grown from 800 before the war to 166,000 (Nidal Al-Mughrabi, 2014). Baker’s tweets have made it to television news programs around the world and brought international attention to the Israeli –Palestinian conflict. The increase in attention within our community and the questions we start to raise about why the rest of the world is not intervening forces our own politicians to act. Perhaps by increasing aid or putting pressure on the countries involved (by trade restrictions etc) to end the conflict.
Source: http://jesuslarena.blogspot.ca/2014/08/por-primera-vez-en-pampelmuse-un-pomelo.html
‘The internet helps furnish the critical leap between the closely personal and the anonymous and abstract, or, as one may say, between the private concerns shared with friends and acquaintances and the public bodies necessary for any significant change’ (Bakardijeva, 2009) .Earlier this year popular clothing companies such as Zara, Gap and French Connection were caught outsourcing angora wool from farms which were committing cruelty towards their rabbits, PETA posted this information and named the companies on Twitter and Facebook, resulting in a sharing frenzy. In addition PETA asked followers to post on the pages of the retailers committing to a boycott until they stopped producing items made with angora wool. The incredible success of the online campaign meant that all the retailers mentioned stopped using the wool within a matter of weeks. There are many other similar campaigns by the RSPCA & Animals Australia targeting the Australian Government such as cage eggs and chickens and pigs in feedlots. This has resulted in Tasmania becoming the first ‘cage free’ state in Australia.
Although these platforms are indispensable to activists, serving as a venue for shared interests and collective action, there are many flaws in the platforms themselves that constrain and prevent certain types of activism. One of the fundamental problems being, the platforms are driven by monetization. In order to stay in business the platforms must appeal to broader classes of users and advertisers, which means that changes to terms and conditions and the architecture of the site. Some changes may be beneficial but increasingly tight privacy changes are not welcome for activists who need a level of protection against retaliation (Youmans, WL & York, JC 2012). An example of this is the famous “We are all Khaled Said” Facebook page that was a central platform for debate during the 2010 Egyptian uprising. The page was deactivated by Facebook in November 2010 due to a violation of their updated terms and conditions where they prohibit pseudonyms in accounts. The creator of the account had put in a fake name for fear over his own safety. It will be interesting to see as the social media platforms continue and tighten rules around anonymity and privacy how activists will use social media, if at all.
Bakardieva, M 2009, ‘Subactivism: Lifeworld and Politics in the Age of the Internet’, Information Society, vol. 25, no.2, pp. 91-104. Available from: 10.1080/01972240802701627. [3 December 2014].
Youmans, WL & York, JC 2012, ‘Social Media and the Activist Toolkit: User Agreements, Corporate Interests, and the Information Infrastructure of Modern Social Movements’, Journal of Communication, vol. 62, no.2, pp. 315-329, Available from: 10.1111/j.1460-2466.2012.01636.x. [3 December 2014].
Nidal Al-Mughrabi, R 2014, ‘Gaza teen’s war tweets make her a social media sensation’, Toronto Sun, Available from: http://www.torontosun.com/2014/08/11/gaza-teens-war-tweets-make-her-a-social-media-sensation. [14 December 2014].
The Daily Mail, 2014, ‘Zara and Gap finally ban angora as shoppers threaten to boycott shops over the horrific plight of rabbits plucked alive for their fur’, The Daily Mail, Available From: : http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2529849/Zara-Gap-finally-ban-angora-shoppers-horrified-plight-rabbits-plucked-alive-threaten-boycott-shops.html#ixzz3LtyUgF4H
Neales, S 2012, ‘”Clean and green’ state Tasmania bans battery eggs’, The Australian, Available from: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/clean-and-green-state-bans-battery-eggs/story-e6frgczx-1226362836421?nk=e5d76e76b81c428895009c145943af86. [14 December 2014].
