Recently I posted a YouTube video entitled “Making the
Impossible Possible” wherein I expressed a strong optimism about the ability of social media
technology to reach out and affect real change in the world.
I would like to attempt to revisit that discussion using additional
context from the article “Small Change: Why the Revolution will not be Tweeted”
(Gladwell, 2010)
After reflecting on Malcolm Gladwell’s article, I realize
that perhaps my assertions were a little bit one-sided. Having never been a
part of any “real” revolution, my thoughts on social media’s role in activism
are influenced by a very limited set of information sources, none of which are
personal experience.
So far, my humanitarian deeds have been limited to a few high-school
abortion protests, some Christian leadership retreats and the occasional donation
through Goodwill or at a Walmart checkout counter. I help the people around me
and try to give time to people when they need it. Sure I’m making progress. But,
in reality, not one of these utilizes social media channels to get the job
done.
I “like” posts related to causes that I feel connected to. I
am a Pitbull lover. I have 3 in my family and all of them are sweeter than any
other breed of dog I’ve met. I don’t understand why people fear them so much
and why a breed specific ban is in place against them. Whenever I see a post in
support of banning the Pitbull ban, I almost always click the like button at
least and sometime I share it. I know that because I clicked like there is a
chance that some of the 200 something connections on my friends list will see
it and maybe they will share it. I know that it might create buzz about the
topic. But, when I really think about it, it usually doesn’t result in “real
social change”.
Clicking a small link on a busy Facebook page in hopes that somebody
else might see it on their busy page, at best, will probably result in them
doing the same. By the same token, there is always the off chance that one of those
people might be looking for a pet and – seeing that post – decides to adopt a
Pitbull, saving its life.
The way that the average person normally uses social media is
probably not going to lead to a revolution. We have seen seeming exceptions to
this rule, when somebody starts something huge using the power of a tweet. However,
they are probably not what you might think of as “average people”, but are in actuality
extraordinary revolutionaries and organizations. For example, the #Occupy
movements which took off in late 2011 and throughout 2012 and still continue –
though on a lesser scale – to the present day. (See this Wikipedia article
for more on the occupy movement.)
Social media is nothing more than a new vehicle which can be
used to communicate in new ways and with fewer boundaries. Like a car, truck,
train or plane, some of these social media sites have more potential momentum
than others, but all of them stand still without somebody piloting.
So, yes, I think social media has the potential to help
assist people in bringing about real social change. However, I think that large
scale social change is still fueled by the people behind the scenes as it
always has been. Social media sites provide new ways to communicate. It is up
to the activist individuals and organizations to harness those communication
tools and to put them to use to create change.
(See: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/10/04/101004fa_fact_gladwell)
4 comments:
Hi James
Your post is well-written and a very interesting read. I liked your personal input on how you contribute to society and what you promote on social media. As well, I often post videos and like causes that I feel are important, such as poverty and the oil sands debate, yet I realize this may have little effect on a solution to the problem. However, I believe those who have the resources, leadership and skills for change can effectively use social media to gain recognition, support and new ideas.
You made a good analogy that social media tools are like a vehicle. Today’s communication technologies are faster and have a broader reach than the past. I am sure activists in the past fully utilized all communication tools available to them to reach a wider audience. It may have been through slower methods such as handing out flyers, but they reached out and networked as best they could. Movement requires action and direction, and in terms of social change, if there is no well-planned actions and objectives, it would be like standing still, as you stated.
Awesome post James!
I said in my own post that I highly doubt high end revolutions would arise out of any social media outlet on the Internet, so while I do disagree about hopes of social media contributing to people becoming more active physically in debates and social changes, I do agree with the fact that it does all come down to the people working behind the scenes, their own motives and drive to make a change in the world using social media. It's evident that we just don't know how to engage a person in the right way yet in order to get that drive to interact digitally in order to change things in the world.
Hey James, great post! I agree with what you have posted. In particular when you said “It is up to the activist individuals and organizations to harness those communication tools and to put them to use to create change” I believe this completely true. They need to tell people what they want them to do, such as donate, volunteer, etc. Then perhaps people will do more than “like” the post because they know what is being asked of them. For example, I recently “liked” a post about letting outside dogs inside. It said “if it’s too cold for you, it’s too cold for your dog”. Now I liked that in hopes that maybe someone on my friends page who has an outside dog might think about how cold it is for their dog and let them in. However, if the post also said “please donate to help us raise awareness about what dogs experience when they are left outside through our mail campaigns". I would have clicked and donated! I think sometimes people click "like" because they do not know what else to do.
Wow Mandy, you are so RIGHT! If there was more direction, people might take more concrete action.
Thanks everybody for the encouragement.
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