|
|
|
 |
|
Thesis List and Presentation
|
|
Gloria Lee
Effects of Social Media in Social Movement : Activism and Slacktivism
|
|
|
|
|
|
Summary
The purpose of this report is to know the effect of social media on social movement and how its role should be in the information-oriented society. By comparing several cases of activism and slacktivism based on social media, this report aims to analyze the advantages and side effects of social media and propose the proper usage, as well as our attitude toward it.
The report first presents information on what is the definition of social media. And I searched the role of ‘Twitter’ in the 2009 Iranian Revolution. The success of demands for political change in Egypt and Tunisia and lots of the Iran related Twitter shows the strong role of social networks to interact thousand miles away. Also social media have played an important role in the candlelight protest movement, by continuing online discussions of the issues underlying the protests. On the other hand, I found that such activism can often be led to “slacktivism”, also referred as “clicking activism”. Kony2012 could be the example that many citizens failed to take a real action off line, and it also demonstrates the ability of social media to delete crucial details, exaggerate and simplify the information.
I found that, on the whole, social media isn’t always giving a positive effect in social movement although it enables to exchange the information instantly. Transparency and “slacktivism”, the act of participating to achieve social change only through using the Internet were one of the controversial aspects of the wrong use of social media, especially in the press. While social media increases awareness, the use of social media is not only a means by which information is exchanged, but itself can be a movement. In conclusion, the proper role of social media and the real activism could be reached when and if the giver and the receiver of the information consider its value correctly.
I suggest the idea to you that news and publishers should recognize the proper usage; to reshape, rethink, analyze. Also viewers should interact with other activists with accurate knowledge and information to raise awareness.
Introduction
As increasing numbers of people are about to deal with using the social media to express themselves, to explore their identities, they have an opportunity to have active citizenship. “Choi soon-sil gate” and “Candlelight protest in 2016”; these are what made people heated and mad at society. News from media and Facebook or blogs was the mediums that enabled me to get used to the situation. The issues have been spreading through various social media made me think that participating for the Gwanghwa-mun Gate candlelight protest might be my duty as a student, if we are to make a difference. After participating in, I thought that the fact that people could freely express their anger about the wrongdoings of the leader was indicating citizens’ great awareness. However, I do believe that people should consistently show a mature sense of citizenships. Considering my experience as part of an example, I wondered how the protest could be formed, what was the influence of social media, and what can we do so as to continue them successfully. The report will be dealing with the relationship in citizens’ social movement behavior and the both negative and positive effect of social media. I did a research to find the examples of information from social media, using social media to express opinions, joining causes, finding and mobilizing information through it, which is an activism. This report is going to suggest social media for opinion expression, activism and the drawbacks of it.
According to Oxford Dictionary, social media refers to websites and applications that enable users to create and share content or to participate in social networking. The media has a powerful role in both generating and harnessing public opinions around specific issues. It has become a revolutionary tool that can spread not only its ideological message, but also its program, operational plan and public opinions. Social media such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and blog increased the speed of interacting with users and exposed people to form their public opinions.
People need publicly and psychologically connected before they engage in social activities. In that sense, participation of citizens in such a large scale shown in the 2016 Candlelight Protests of South Korea can be explained as a huge shift in political and social movement. One representative example of slacktivism carried out from social media could be the ‘#Kony2012 campaign’, which aimed to draw attention to capture Ugandan war criminal, Joseph Kony. ‘Kony 2012’ was a campaign created by the organization Invisible Children in the form of a 28-minute video dealing with the dangerous situation of many children in Africa at the hands of Joseph Kony, the leader of a terrorist group Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). Yet, the video has been mostly attributed to just make it famous; some criticizes that if the campaign had focused more on giving transparence information, the activism would have been active.
The issue will be considered in terms of sociology, politics and culture. The issue will be demonstrating how a wider and influential could social media effects social participation, with more detailed side effects such as slacktivism. This can help to gain better insight in the roles media and what should they overcome.
|
|
