Bridging the virtual and real: The relationship between web content, linkage, and geographical proximity of social movements (original) (raw)
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Despite the tremendous amount of attention that has been paid to the internet as a tool for civic engagement, we still have little idea how "active" is the average online activist or how social networks matter in facilitating electronic protest. In this paper, we use complete records on the donation and recruitment activity of 1.2 million members of the Save Darfur "Cause" on Facebook to provide a detailed first look at a massive online social movement. While both donation and recruitment behavior are socially patterned, the vast majority of Cause members recruited no one else into the Cause and contributed no money to it-suggesting that in the case of the Save Darfur campaign, Facebook conjured an illusion of activism rather than facilitating the real thing.
The structure of online activism Article (Published version) (Refereed
Despite the tremendous amount of attention that has been paid to the internet as a tool for civic engagement, we still have little idea how "active" is the average online activist or how social networks matter in facilitating electronic protest. In this paper, we use complete records on the donation and recruitment activity of 1.2 million members of the Save Darfur "Cause" on Facebook to provide a detailed first look at a massive online social movement. While both donation and recruitment behavior are socially patterned, the vast majority of Cause members recruited no one else into the Cause and contributed no money to it-suggesting that in the case of the Save Darfur campaign, Facebook conjured an illusion of activism rather than facilitating the real thing.
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This research paper examines the role of the Internet as it relates to the development of social movements and political protest in the ‘physical’ world. It also analyses the role of independent media and reporting methodologies used by activists and net-artists. The emergence of online activism and an emphasis on collaboration, information sharing and open source tools also had a significant impact on new media arts discussions and aesthetics. The refugee activist movement in Australia is a key case study in this thesis, as it is an excellent example of how activists have used the Internet and WWW to garner support within the community and to engage people to come to protests. In addition, activists at the protests have reported these events on the WWW and this subject has had a resounding impact within the context of contemporary and media arts.. The implications of identity online is a major factor in constructing the arguments in this thesis, as the relationship between ‘real’ and ‘virtual’ space is explored in detail as it relates to personal identity and online community.
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