#HASHTAG ACTIVISM
Are we activists or slacktivists? A look at the success, failure and future of campus social movements through the use of Facebook and Twitter trends.
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Twenty years ago, an activist was known as someone who picketed outside buildings, marched in the streets, chanted at the top of their lungs and blocked traffic for their cause. Forms of protest were often very visible, requiring someone to actually go somewhere or to (literally) stand up for a change.
Today, activism is a little different.
With the rise of social media came the rise in "hashtag activism," or spreading awareness about a cause through the use of trending hashtag links on social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook. In this way, one need not paint a picket sign to be a protester; rather, all they have to do is open an app on their phone and type 140 characters or less.
- THE RISE OF HASHTAG ACTIVISM -
Perhaps one of the most noteworthy groups in which we can observe hashtag activism is college students. General demographics of these individuals set the stage for a perfect storm when it comes to observing and participating in social movements online: they are young, innovative, and educated. As a community of students with a variety of social views, college campuses have become breeding grounds for activism, with student organizations and groups regularly participating in event to promote causes. It is for this reason that I chose to focus on social media's effect on activism for this group in particular.
- WHEN IT WORKS -
It is clear that young people spend a lot of time on social media. Pew Research data concludes that 95% of teens are online, and 81% of online teens have some kind of social media account. With all of this exposure,social media has become a major platform for communication, debate and persuasion. Among college students, activism doesn't stop at trending hashtags. Social movements encourage users to change their profile pictures, shoot video, post photos and join groups to promote a cause.
Survey data showed that, in general, students were much more likely to participate in activist movements on social media than in person.
Survey data showed that, in general, students were much more likely to participate in activist movements on social media than in person.
To explore campus activist movements on social media, I generated the opinions of the audience that these trends attempt to reach: college students. I conducted a survey of 40 students at the University of Michigan to generate an overview of the general opinion of hashtag activism on our college campus. Their ideas of what is working and what is failing provide an idea of why certain movements may lead to actual change, while some are merely fruitless retweets.
The survey results suggest that, in general, students are much more likely to participate in activism on social media than in person, whether for convienence, social capital or fear of speaking up in a face-to-face environment.
Additionally, the vast majority of respondents recalled seeing a post on social media that related to activism in the past day, with many reporting to have seen one in the past hour. This shows just how consistent activist posts are shared online.
Last year at the University of Michigan, the Black Student Union launched the social media campaign "Being Black at U of M" utilizing the trend #BBUM. To raise awareness of low levels of racial diversity among students on campus, black students tweeted short testimonials of their experience as an underrepresented minority on campus along with the hashtag, which evolved into a platform for discussion and debate. The movement caught on at U of M, and quickly spread to colleges across the nation. A Fox affiliate station covered the story, and national news organizations also reported on the event, including The New York Times.
To get a first-hand perspective what it takes to launch a successful campus activist campaign online, I talked with Central Student Government Representative Fabiana Diaz, who helped spread the “It’s On Us” campaign at U of M. According to my survey data, #ItsOnUs was reported effective, as some students claimed it increased there awareness of sexual assault prevention on campus. Diaz attributes part of the campaign’s ability to “catch on like fire” on social media. “I think activism even how is picking up because of social media,” she said. “It’s quicker to get involved.”
We’ve seen that college students are turning to social media for activism: but when is this effective? There are times when simple hashtags, profile pictures or viral videos have the ability to generate national attention and give voice to underrepresented groups or causes. My survey results revealed what specific hashtags U of M students believed were effective in promoting actual change.
In my survey, students rated #BBUM the most effective hashtag on campus of 2014 , with the #IceBucketChallenge and #ItsOnUs also showing high ratings of success. Looking at these movements in particular could provide a view of what works for hashtag activism.
But activism doesn't stop at trending hashtags. Last summer, videos of our friends drenched in ice water overtook our Facebook and Twitter feeds when the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge swept the nation. The movement encouraged individuals to post videos on social media and nominate others to do so in order to spread awareness of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Those who “failed” to complete the challenge were told to donate to the cause. This creative idea generated one of the most tangible outcomes of all: money. In total, the trend raised over $100 million in donations for ALS research.
- WHEN IT FAILS-
However, it may be safe to assume that for every successful campaign on social media, there are a number of failures. Regarding the limitations of online activism, Diaz did not claim that the movement was perfect. “In a way, [social media] also hurts a cause, because it can just be like, ‘Oh yeah, I’ll share it. I did my part.’ There’s so much more you could be doing,” she said.
Diaz is referring to the view of online activism as the lone solution, a trend many critics term “slacktivism.” When becoming an activist is as simple as clicking “retweet,” barriers to entry fall entirely, giving way to “trendy activism.”
A prime example of slacktivism was #KONY2012, a hashtag that many respondents to my survey reported considered an "unsuccessful campaign." Kony 2012 was a Twitter movement in correlation with the production of a short film motivating us to find, capture and arrest African militia and cult leader Joseph Kony by the end of 2012. The trend erupted over social media; in the first three days of its release, there were 1,380,900 tweets every day about the movement. Individuals retweeted, changed their Facebook photos and overwhelmingly claimed to have the upmost desire to “save the invisible children.”However, only 3.6% of these people actually pledged to take action on the Kony 2012 website. It is true that protecting these children was a noble cause; however, rushed judgment and bandwagon activism inhibited users from actually understanding the cause. Though the movement generated donations, the movement was not sustained. Failure to address important factors of the issue (such as why the Ugandan government had neglected to act against Kony) and the lack of logistical plans for arresting the man led to the downfall of the movement.
Needless to say, like many bandwagon activism trends, the movement fizzled out over time. Today, roughly two years later, Twitter searches for #KONY2012 display a queue of sarcastic jokes about the movement.
Critics claim that countless hashtags for campaigns lead to rushed judgment and following, as people may join a cause they know nothing about just because everyone else is doing it. The desire to join a trend as effortlessly as possible brings down the effectiveness of activism on social media and doesn’t do anything to promote actual change.
It can be easy to get swept up in the sea of viral videos, profile picture trends, and hashtags about activist causes online. It is also true that people may become disillusioned my online activist trends; people may jump on the activism bandwagon because everyone else is without actually understanding the cause, or they may feel that simply posting on social media is enough to solve the problem. No, social media alone will not solve the world’s problems. People can tweet all they want but, the truth is, something must actually be done in addition to awareness in order to see positive change.
But that’s not to say activism on social media is all bad. The platform invites people to discuss topics in a way that was never possible before, allowing us to interact with others a world away in an instant in dialogue on an issue.
“When you’re wanting to raise awareness I think that’s great, but now it’s like, how do you go beyond that,” Diaz said. “And . . .you need social media to campaign for that ‘beyond that.’ You’re always going to need social media, but there are ways to market it and ways to make it more powerful and useful.”
Followers of KONY 2012 thought that simply retweeting or slapping on a bumper sticker would solve the larger, overarching problem. Tweeting about the issue made people proud of themselves, but pushed an actual solution to an unknown other, who—as it turned out— did not exist.
This example teaches a valuable lesson about social media activism: if the people are not informed through trends, it is simply a trend, and it will not raise actual awareness.
- IMPACT ON JOURNALISM -
Successful or not, there are countless activist trends floating around on social media. Today, it is exceedingly simple to share your views on a controversial topic in an instant, without ever having to actually confront anyone face-to-face. Though partisanship online is not a bad thing for everyone, it can lead to questionable ethical dilemmas for journalists.
As the news becomes increasingly digitalized, so do reporters. Most have their own Twitter accounts, where they balance tweeting about their beats as well as their own personal lives. On a University level, this is especially true for social movements on campus; it may seem all too easy for reporters at the University to publicly align themselves with causes on professional social media accounts. This led me to wonder: what happens when hashtag activism intersects with journalistic integrity?
To investigate this, I spoke with Anthony Collings, professor in Communication Studies at the University of Michigan, who specifically teaches a course on journalism ethics. He explained how CNN’s foreign editor for the Middle East was fired for a tweet praising a Hezbollah leader. “That crossed the line,” he said. “It was a personal view of hers but it was interpreted as CNN’s view.”
Providing some clarity on the situation, Collings made the distinction clear: activism on social media may be useful for some people, but it’s not for journalists. “If the question is ‘what should journalists do,’ I think the answer is: don’t write personal views on anything,” he said. “Just be a professional. Be a journalist.”
- OUTLOOK FOR THE FUTURE -
Nobody is sure exactly what the future holds. For all we know, activism on social media may be a fleeting fad of our time, a temporary extension of physical, grassroots movements. At the same time, it may be transforming everything we know to be social change, making way for a new generation of hyper-informed advocates. Still, there is one thing we know for sure: for now, hashtag activism is happening, but it must be properly executed in order to inspire actual change.
Hashtags reported to be the most effective are shown the largest.