scholarly journals Social Media, Professional Media and Mobilisation in Contemporary Britain: Explaining the Strengths and Weaknesses of the Citizens’ Movement 38 Degrees

2016 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 42-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Chadwick ◽  
James Dennis
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Political Activism ◽  
Political Efficacy ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Digital Activism ◽  
Digital Network ◽  
Current Thinking ◽  
Media Professional

Digital media continue to reshape political activism in unexpected ways. Within a period of a few years, the internet-enabled UK citizens’ movement 38 Degrees has amassed a membership of 3 million and now sits alongside similar entities such as America’s MoveOn, Australia’s GetUp! and the transnational movement Avaaz. In this article, we contribute to current thinking about digital media and mobilisation by addressing some of the limitations of existing research on these movements and on digital activism more generally. We show how 38 Degrees’ digital network repertoires coexist interdependently with its strategy of gaining professional news media coverage. We explain how the oscillations between choreographic leadership and member influence and between digital media horizontalism and elite media-centric work constitute the space of interdependencies in which 38 Degrees acts. These delicately balanced relations can quickly dissolve and be replaced by simpler relations of dependence on professional media. Yet despite its fragility, we theorise about how 38 Degrees may boost individuals’ political efficacy, irrespective of the outcome of individual campaigns. Our conceptual framework can be used to guide research on similar movements.

scholarly journals From Cyber-Autonomism to Cyber-Populism: An Ideological Analysis of the Evolution of Digital Activism

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 477-489 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Gerbaudo
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Social Factors ◽  
Technological Development ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Digital Activism ◽  
Perceptions And Attitudes ◽  
Political Orientations ◽  
Two Phases ◽  
Second Wave

The analysis of digital activism has so far been dominated by a techno-determinist approach which interprets the logic of activism and its transformation as directly reflecting the properties of the technologies utilised by activists. This line of interpretatoin has been manifested in the popularity acquired by notions as “Twitter protest” or “revolution 2.0” in the news media and in academic discourse. Moving beyond this reductionist trend, this article proposes an ideological approach to the study of digital activism and its hisstorical transformation, which can better account for the combination of political, cultural and social factors involved in shaping it. I identity two main waves of digital activism, corresponding not only to two phases of technological development of the internet (the so-called web 1.0 and web 2.0), but also to two different protest waves, the anti-globalisation movement, and the movement of the squares that began in 2011, each with its own dominant ideology. I argue that reflecting the seismic shift in perceptions and attitudes produced by the 2008 crash, and the connected shifts in social movement ideology, digital activism has moved from the margins to the centre, from a countercultural posture to a counterhegemonic ambition. I describe this turn as a transition from cyber-autonomism to cyber-populism as the two defining techno-political orientations of the first and second wave of digital activism. Reflecting the influence of neo-anarchism and autonomism in the anti-globalisation movement cyber-autonomism saw the Internet as an autonomous space where to construct a countercultural politics outside the mainstream. To the contrary cyber-populism, informed by the populist turn taken by 2011 and post-2011 movements, sees the Internet as a “popular space”, which needs to be appropriated by ordinary citizens, turned away from consumption activities and towards the purpose of popular mobilisation against the neoliberal elites. This shift that substantially modifies the way in which activists conceives of and utilise digital media goes a long way towards explaining the differences in digital activism practices, and their contrasting views of the internet as a tool and site of struggle.

Blogging as ‘Recoding’: A Case Study of the Discursive War over the Sinking of the Cheonan

2011 ◽  
Vol 141 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-106
Author(s):  
Yeran Kim ◽  
Irkwon Jeong ◽  
Hyoungkoo Khang ◽  
Bomi Kim
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Korean Society ◽  
The Public ◽  
Digital Network ◽  
The Social ◽  
Discursive Politics ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Media Practices

This article explores how Korean bloggers, in contestation, participate in the social structure of communication and potentially transform it through their vernacular practices of decoding and recoding in the blogosphere. As a neo-liberal regime has been established, citizens practise discursive politics in a seemingly democratic and technologically advanced society that is actually a coercive-controlled communication system. Through the analysis of news blogs on the Cheonan disaster, it is suggested that a majority of bloggers are seen to utilise news media stories to gain leverage for their points of view or to provide counter-arguments against the dominant frames generated by the established news media. The critical reframing of the digital network in Korean society allows a reflexive reading of the Korean digital wave, which should be contextualised within generation politics, economic polarisation and ideological contestation. In order to avoid a nationalistic celebration of the IT power of the country, citizens' digital media practices are analysed as contributions to the democratisation of the public sphere and the enhancement of social openness and participation in the digitised arena of discursive politics.

Farming on Facebook, Camera-less Food Photography and a New Indian Pastoral

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Aileen Blaney
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Food Production ◽  
Web Search ◽  
Rural India ◽  
Adobe Flash ◽  
Underlying Causes ◽  
Agrarian Crisis ◽  
Food Photography

Lacunae in media images and reports of death and agrarian based suffering, experienced by India's debt prone farmers, have only begun to be addressed in the Indian news media. While the agrarian crisis is spectacularized through 24 hour news cycle images, analysis of underlying causes is less common in print and digital media. Kheti Badi, a photo-series produced from screenshots of FarmVille (an Adobe Flash gaming application on Facebook), interrogates this media impasse. It critiques homogenized images of food and farming, which rise to the top of web search results, and photojournalistic images showing the dignified suffering of Indian agricultural workers. Kheti Badi's computer made images are an alternative to visual stereotyping of rural India in photojournalism. Its technological inventiveness neither spectacularizes farmer protests or suicides nor aestheticizes pastoral qualities associated with the land. To make visible the changing nature of food production and need to reform farming in India, and its media coverage, Kheti Badi supplants the Indian pastoral with a new pictorial.

scholarly journals Scandal mining: political nobodies and remediated visibility

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 893-908 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Trottier
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Accountability ◽  
Federal Election ◽  
First Pass ◽  
Media Channels

This article considers the 2015 federal election in Canada as the emergence of seemingly citizen-led practices whereby candidates’ past missteps are unearthed and distributed through social and news media channels. On first pass, these resemble citizen-led engagements through digital media for potentially unmappable political goals, given the dispersed and either non-partisan or multi-partisan nature of these engagements. By bringing together journalistic accounts and social media coverage alongside current scholarship on citizenship and visibility, this case study traces the possibility of political accountability and the political weaponisation of mediated visibility through the targeted extraction of candidate details from dispersed profiles, communities and databases.

scholarly journals Digital Piety and the Transformation of Political Activism of Youth Hijrah Movement

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 329-350
Author(s):  
Ali Ja'far
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
Urban Area ◽  
Field Observation ◽  
Political System ◽  
Political Activism ◽  
Modern Technology ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Political Transformation ◽  
Historical Root

Abstract: This paper explains about hijrah, a popular term among urban youths; it refers not only religious, but also political transformation. This activity has been  growing massively in the urban area through the internet and in the short after the fall of Soeharto regime where democracy and the technology has become more developed. Digitally, hijrah shapes the narration of being pious, religious and modern-fashionable look. Taking the data from field observation on the hijrah event and following the digital media, this paper attempts to investigate the historical root of hijrah and how the youth utilize modern technology to visualize and share their narration on being politically pious. Borrowing the idea from Birgit Meyer and Bayat about visualization and post-Islamism, this paper has found that although hijrah narration is close to fundamental religious activism and politically promotes Islamic political system, but the agenda has not succeeded. However, hijrah activity is successful in engaging youth through the events such as; sharing session, gathering, book review, festival and preaching which are specifically designed for youths.الملخص: يتناول هذا البحث عن الهجرة وهي مصطلح شائع بين شباب الحضر. ولا يشير هذا الموضوع الى التغير الديني ، بل حتى التغير السياسي. وازدهرت أنشطة الهجرة بعد سقوط سوهارتو بسرعة فائقة وكذلك الديموقراطية والتكنولوجيا . وكونت الهجرة في العالم الرقمي التقوى والدين والحداثة ايضا . آخذا المعلومات من المنهج الميداني مع تتبع الوسائل الهجرة الرقمية، تحاول هذا البحث التحقق عن جذور التاريخ وكيفية تعامل الشباب مع التكنولوجيا المعاصرة لتصور المسائل ونشر الروايات حول موضوع الصالح . نستعير فكر بيرجير ماير وبيات حول التصورية وما بعد الاسلامية ، تكشف هذا البحث موضوع الهجرة قريبة الى جذروية الدينية و من سياسيتها الى السياسية الشرعية ولكن لا تسير هذه الانشطة على ما يرام. ومن نا حية أخرى ، تربط انشطة الهجرة مع الشباب كالمناقشات والمحاضرات ومراجعة الكتب والتجمعات ترابطا وطيدا وناجحا لأنها خصصت مصممة للشبابAbstrak: Tulisan ini menjelaskan tentang hijrah. Sebuah terma yang popular di kalangan anak muda urban. Terma ini tidak hanya merujuk pada istilah akan perubahan keagamaan, tetapi juga perubahan politik. Aktifitas hijrah tumbuh pesat setelah runtuhnya regime Soeharto dimana demokrasi dan perkembangan teknologi semakin maju. Hijrah dalam dunia digital juga membentuk narasi akan kesalehan, keagamaan, dan modernitas. Penelitian ini mengambil data dari observasi lapangan serta mengikuti media digital hijrah. Tulisan ini berusaha menginvestigasi akar sejarah dari hijrah dan bagaimana anak-anak muda menggunakan teknologi modern untuk memvisualisasikan dan menyebarkan narasi tentang kesalihan. Meminjam ide dari Birgit Meyer dan Bayat tentang visualisasi dan post-Islamism, tulisan ini mengungkap bahwa meskipun narasi hijrah itu sangat dekat dengan fundamentalisme agama dan secara politis mendukung sistem politik berlandaskan Islam akan tetapi agenda ini tidak berjalan dengan baik. Sebaliknya, aktifitas hijrah yang mengikat anak muda melalui berbagai event seperti, sesi diskusi, gathering, bedah buku, festival, dan ceramah keagamaan telah sukses mengikat anak muda karena aktifitas itu secara khusus didesain untuk anak muda)   

Output-Oriented Language Learning With Digital Media

2009 ◽  
pp. 42-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Rüschoff
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Knowledge Construction ◽  
Best Practice ◽  
Approaches To Learning ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Current Thinking ◽  
Media And Technology ◽  
Output Hypothesis ◽  
Learning Projects

Current thinking in SLA methodology favours knowledge construction rather than simple instructivist learning as an appropriate paradigm for language learning. Within this context, project-based and taskoriented scenarios have often been regarded as the real forte of digital media and technology-enhanced tools. Such approaches to learning are also rooted in the output hypothesis, which argue that learners should actively engage themselves in the creation of “comprehensible output” in order to develop linguistically and cognitively. Following the apparent upgrade of the Internet to Web 2.0, expectations are running high as to the innovative potential of this (supposedly) new platform for Technology Enhanced Language Learning. This chapter will discuss the principle of output orientation in language learning and consider some of the tools the “new” Internet has to offer in such an approach. It will also present a few ideas for learning projects and samples of best practice in order to show how the use of digital media can contribute both to the quality and quantity of product.

scholarly journals The Internet and Political Participation of Indonesian Students in Taiwan

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 72-84
Author(s):  
Albertus Magnus Prestianta
Keyword(s):  
Political Participation ◽  
News Media ◽  
Political Efficacy ◽  
Online News ◽  
Internet Usage ◽  
Quantitative Approach ◽  
The Internet

This study examined how Internet through online news media is used to influence political participation and political efficacy. Scholars believe that the existence of Internet could have a significant impact on broadening political participation and political efficacy. This research is written based on the quantitative approach. Questionnaire items were employed to find out the relationships between online news media, political participation and political efficacy. The samples used in this research are Indonesian students in Taiwan. As predicted, the findings indicated that Internet usage, particularly online news media, was positively associated with higher levels of political participation and also political efficacy among Indonesian students in Taiwan. Keywords: Indonesian, the Internet, online news media, political efficacy, politicalparticipation.

scholarly journals Population Control, Deadly Vaccines, and Mutant Mosquitoes: The Construction and Circulation of Zika Virus Conspiracy Theories Online

2019 ◽  
Vol 44 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott S.D. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Digital Media ◽  
News Media ◽  
Zika Virus ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Population Control ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
Conspiracy Theories ◽  
Contagious Diseases ◽  
Virus Zika

Background  Disease outbreaks are often accompanied by sensationalist news media coverage, social media panic, and a barrage of conspiracy theories and misinformation. The Zika virus outbreak of 2015–2016 followed this pattern.Analysis  Drawing on frame analysis, this article examines the construction and circulation of a conspiracy theory concerning the 2015–2016 Zika outbreak, analyzing the flow of misinformation across online platforms including “conspiracy” websites, online discussion threads, and Twitter.Conclusion and implications  Conspiracy theories produced and shared on social and digital media platforms have the power to discursively construct contagious diseases such as Zika, which may fuel misguided public perceptions and impact health policy.Contexte  Les pics épidémiques suscitent souvent une couverture médiatique sensationnaliste, la panique dans les médias sociaux et une panoplie de théories du complot et de désinformation. La flambée du virus Zika en 2015–2016 en est un exemple.Analyse  Cet article se fonde sur une analyse des cadres pour examiner la construction et la circulation de théories du complot relatives à la flambée du Zika en 2015–2016, analysant la désinformation sur diverses plateformes en ligne, y compris des sites complotistes, des fils de discussion et Twitter.Conclusions et implications  Les plateformes en ligne développent et partagent des théories du complot qui ont le pouvoir de décrire des maladies contagieuses telles que le Zika de manière à entraîner des perceptions publiques erronées et à influencer les politiques sur la santé.

Im Archiv der Öffentlichkeit

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rudolf Maresch
Keyword(s):  
Mass Media ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Structural Transformation ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Oder Eine ◽  
The Public ◽  
Postal Services ◽  
The Public Sphere

Durch den digitalen Medienwandel ist der Begriff der Öffentlichkeit problematisch geworden. Die Debatte fokussiert sich zumeist auf die Frage, ob die sogenannte bürgerliche Öffentlichkeit durch das Internet im Niedergang begriffen ist oder eine Intensivierung und Pluralisierung erfährt. Rudolf Maresch zeichnet die berühmte Untersuchung der Kategorie durch Jürgen Habermas nach und zieht den von ihm konstatierten Strukturwandel der Öffentlichkeit in Zweifel. Dagegen verweist er auf die gouvernementalen und medialen Prozesse, die jede Form von Kommunikation immer schon gesteuert haben. Öffentlichkeit sei daher ein Epiphänomen nicht allein des Zeitungswesens, sondern der bereits vorgängig ergangenen postalischen Herstellung einer allgemeinen Adressierbarkeit von Subjekten. Heute sei Öffentlichkeit innerhalb der auf Novitäts- und Erregungskriterien abstellenden Massenmedien ein mit anderen Angeboten konkurrierendes Konzept. Mercedes Bunz konstatiert ebenfalls eine Ausweitung und Pluralisierung von Öffentlichkeit durch den digitalen Medienwandel, sieht aber die entscheidenden Fragen in der Konzeption und Verteilung von Evaluationswissen und Evaluationsmacht. Nicht mehr die sogenannten Menschen, sondern Algorithmen entscheiden über die Verbreitung und Bewertung von Nachrichten. Diese sind in der Öffentlichkeit – die sie allererst erzeugen – weitgehend verborgen. Einig sind sich die Autoren darin, dass es zu einer Pluralisierung von Öffentlichkeiten gekommen ist, während der Öffentlichkeitsbegriff von Habermas auf eine singuläre Öffentlichkeit abstellt. </br></br>Due to the transformation of digital media, the notion of “publicity” has become problematic. In most cases, the debate is focused on the question whether the internet causes a decline of so-called civic publicity or rather intensifies and pluralizes it. Rudolf Maresch outlines Jürgen Habermas's famous study of this category and challenges his claim concerning its “structural transformation,” referring to the governmental and medial processes which have always already controlled every form of communication. Publicity, he claims, is an epiphenomenon not only of print media, but of a general addressability of subjects, that has been produced previously by postal services. Today, he concludes, publicity is a concept that competes with other offers of mass media, which are all based on criteria of novelty and excitement. Mercedes Bunz also notes the expansion and pluralization of the public sphere due to the change of digital media, but sees the crucial issues in the design and distribution of knowledge and power by evaluation. So-called human beings no longer decide on the dissemination and evaluation of information, but algorithms, which are for the most part concealed from the public sphere that they produce in the first place. Both authors agree that a pluralization of public sphere(s) has taken place, while Habermas's notion of publicity refers to a single public sphere.

Making the Most of the Internet for Failure Analysis

1998 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan J. Bodoh
Keyword(s):  
New Media ◽  
Failure Analysis ◽  
Digital Media ◽  
Optimization Theory ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Digital Medium ◽  
Production Distribution ◽  
Digital Production ◽  
Computer Monitors ◽  
And Storage

Abstract The growth of the Internet over the past four years provides the failure analyst with a new media for communicating his results. The new digital media offers significant advantages over analog publication of results. Digital production, distribution and storage of failure analysis results reduces copying costs and paper storage, and enhances the ability to search through old analyses. When published digitally, results reach the customer within minutes of finishing the report. Furthermore, images on the computer screen can be of significantly higher quality than images reproduced on paper. The advantages of the digital medium come at a price, however. Research has shown that employees can become less productive when replacing their analog methodologies with digital methodologies. Today's feature-filled software encourages "futzing," one cause of the productivity reduction. In addition, the quality of the images and ability to search the text can be compromised if the software or the analyst does not understand this digital medium. This paper describes a system that offers complete digital production, distribution and storage of failure analysis reports on the Internet. By design, this system reduces the futzing factor, enhances the ability to search the reports, and optimizes images for display on computer monitors. Because photographic images are so important to failure analysis, some digital image optimization theory is reviewed.

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