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R@D: Facebook and the anti-FARC Rallies
Written by Patrick Meier on December 1, 2008 – 5:57 am -
The purpose of Research@DigiActive (R@D) is to produce applied, thought-provoking, actionable research at the cutting edge of Digital Activism. It seeks to highlight and disseminate studies in the new academic field of digital activism by publishing short papers by promising scholars. To submit a paper or get more information, please contact our Director of Applied Research, Patrick Meier, at Patrick AT Digiactive.org.
Title: Facebook for Protest? The Value of Social Software for Political Activism in the Anti-FARC Rallies
Authors: Christina Neumayer, Celina Raffl
ICT&S Center, University of Salzburg, Austria
Abstract: How do real and virtual spaces influence on another in the field of political activism? This R@D research product draws on the Facebook-mediated anti-FARC protests in Colombia to assess the potential of the Internet in globalizing geographically specific political contests. One of the key factors used in quantifying this relationship is access: who has the ability to express themselves politically in a virtual space?
In order to bring quantitative analysis to bear on this question, this research cross-references rally locations to rankings on the Human Development Index and finds a high correlation between the incidence of rallies and high ranking on the index, implying that Internet-mediated activism is to some extent contingent on economic class (a proxy for technology access, among other things). The paper concludes by reaffirming that the use of social software for political protest is dependent on the ideologies and the cultural and political contexts of its users and developers.
Tags: colombia, facebook, farc
Posted in Americas, R@D, Social Networks | 2 Comments »
Theory: Poverty & Digital Activism
Written by DigiActive Team on October 15, 2008 – 5:12 pm -
As our contribution to Blog Action Day, I’d like to offer a response to a common question I receive: “How can you promote digital activism in resource-constrained societies if poor people don’t have access to digital tools?”
In answering this question, it isn’t sufficient to respond with the multiple examples of activists without substantial resources mounting brilliantly creative and successful campaigns for social an internet center supported by the Brazilian Ministry of Culture and political change like the strikers in Egypt using Facebook, the Help Fouad campaign in Morocco, and anti-FARC activists in Colombia.
Answering this question in a persuasive way requires a more thorough analysis of how access to digital tools is changing and what this means for political activism. The key trends here are sky-rocketing increases in mobile phone subscriptions in developing countries and more shared mobile phones and computers. The digital divide is no longer defined by computer ownership. There are simply too many other ways to get on the network.
Let’s take Brazil as an example. To quote an article from World Politics Review from earlier this year: “In Brazil, the spread of communications technology is proceeding at breakneck speed. Internet usage statistics are breaking records every month. As a result, Brazilian society is changing in ways that have hardly begun to be understood.”
Read more »
Tags: Blog Action Day, brazil, colombia, Egypt, mobile, mobileactive, morocco, poverty
Posted in Americas, Mid-East & N. Africa, Mobile Phones, Theory | No Comments »
Tactic: Colombians Organize with Facebook
Written by Mary on February 11, 2008 – 7:35 pm -Description: Four Colombian uses of Facebook created the group Un Millon de Voces Contra las FARC (a Million Voices Against the FARC) and used the page to organize a day of worldwide protests against the Colombian rebel group on Monday, February 4.
Organizer: Carlos Andres Santiago and 3 other Colombian Facebook users.
Purpose of Action: To oppose the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia - Ejército del Pueblo), a guerrilla organization guilty of human rights abuses.
Organizing Tools: Facebook (the mainstream media, as well as business and civic organizations picked up on the Facebook protest and helped to promote it, which was critical to its success.)
Outcome: The rally in Colombia’s capital, Bogotá, drew 2 million participants and was the largest rally in Colombia’s history. Rallies were organized in 185 cities around the world.
Ease of Replication: Creating a Facebook group is free and extremely easy. Carrying out a global protest is more difficult. In order to succeed, your event must catch the public imagination so that other people and groups, particularly the mainstream media, help you in promoting the protest.
anti-FARC protest in Hong Kong, part on the worldwide day of action on Feb 4.
Tags: colombia, facebook, farc, hongkong
Posted in Americas, Asia, Social Networks, Tactics | 2 Comments »