Mobilizing media: comparing TV and social media effects on protest mobilization
Mobilizing media: comparing TV and social media effects on protest mobilization
Author
Boulianne, Shelley
Koc-Michalska, Karolina
Bimber, Bruce
Faculty Advisor
Date
2020
Keywords
social media , protest , marches , television
Abstract (summary)
The year 2017 saw a cycle of protest ignited by President Trump’s election and subsequent
policies. This research seeks to investigate the role of social media and television in raising
awareness of protest events and increasing participation in marches and demonstrations. This
paper uses data from two surveys conducted in May and June 2017, during the peak of this cycle
of protest. We explore the role of social media for protest participation (in general) as well as for
awareness and participation in the Women’s March and March for Science. We find that Twitter
use offers more consistent effects compared to Facebook in relation to the cycle of protest. In
contrast, television use has no impact on awareness and thus, limited potential for mobilization.
Social media is distinctive in relation to mobilization, because of social networking features that
allow people to learn about specific events, discuss the issues, expose people to invitations to
participation, as well as identify members of one’s social network who are also interested in
participation.
Publication Information
Boulianne, S., Koc-Michalska, K., & Bimber, B. (2020). Mobilizing media: Comparing TV and social media effects on protest mobilization. Information, Communication & Society. doi: 10.1080/1369118X.2020.1713847
DOI
Notes
Item Type
Language
English
Rights
All Rights Reserved