The past decades have generated a wealth of literature on digital activism. Even so, the phenomenon has been little historicised. This paper engages in a deconstructionist exercise on historical references in digital activism literature towards exploring implicit meaning-making in a symbolic-interactionist tradition. It identifies four distinct narratives: 1) a technology narrative [activism as technology-driven]; 2) a communications narrative [activism on the basis of communication options]; 3) an online-off-line narrative [activism based on an online-off-line dichotomy]; and 4) an engagement narrative [activism based on its affordances for public engagement]. The paper argues that these narratives contribute to a distinct, polysemic, and paradoxical understanding of digital activism as a phenomenon that is technologically driven (technological determinism), and both distinct to and enmeshed with traditional activism. In doing so, this narrative analysis shows a range of underlying ideological assumptions in digital activism study and conceptualisation, which informs how the phenomenon is understood today.

The problem of history in digital activism: Ideological narratives in digital activism literature / Oezkula, Suay Melisa. - In: FIRST MONDAY. - ISSN 1396-0466. - 26:8(2021). [10.5210/fm.v26i8.10597]

The problem of history in digital activism: Ideological narratives in digital activism literature

Oezkula, Suay Melisa
2021-01-01

Abstract

The past decades have generated a wealth of literature on digital activism. Even so, the phenomenon has been little historicised. This paper engages in a deconstructionist exercise on historical references in digital activism literature towards exploring implicit meaning-making in a symbolic-interactionist tradition. It identifies four distinct narratives: 1) a technology narrative [activism as technology-driven]; 2) a communications narrative [activism on the basis of communication options]; 3) an online-off-line narrative [activism based on an online-off-line dichotomy]; and 4) an engagement narrative [activism based on its affordances for public engagement]. The paper argues that these narratives contribute to a distinct, polysemic, and paradoxical understanding of digital activism as a phenomenon that is technologically driven (technological determinism), and both distinct to and enmeshed with traditional activism. In doing so, this narrative analysis shows a range of underlying ideological assumptions in digital activism study and conceptualisation, which informs how the phenomenon is understood today.
2021
8
Oezkula, Suay Melisa
The problem of history in digital activism: Ideological narratives in digital activism literature / Oezkula, Suay Melisa. - In: FIRST MONDAY. - ISSN 1396-0466. - 26:8(2021). [10.5210/fm.v26i8.10597]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11572/320051
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