Platform affordances, discursive opportunities, and social media activism

A cross-platform analysis of #MeToo on Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit, 2017–2020

Bibliographic Data

ID7477111
AuthorsMengyu Li (0000-0002-6791-1170, University of Wisconsin–Madison, corresponding author), J Suk (0000-0003-4690-2395, University of Connecticut), Yini Zhang (0000-0002-2957-1590, University at Buffalo, USA), Jon C Pevehouse (University of Wisconsin–Madison), Jon Pevehouse (0000-0003-1761-0422, University of Wisconsin–Madison), Yibing Sun (0000-0002-1353-9940, University of Wisconsin–Madison), Hyerin Kwon (0000-0002-6035-4500, University of Wisconsin–Madison), Ruixue Lian (0000-0002-3919-3204, University of Wisconsin–Madison), Rui Wang (0000-0001-7155-3356, University at Buffalo, USA), Xinxia Dong (0000-0001-9748-9938, University at Buffalo, USA), Dhavan V Shah (0000-0001-5034-2816, University of Wisconsin–Madison)
Year2024
Volume28
Issue1
Pages119-147
Publication date2024-10-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueNew Media & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1461-4448 • E-ISSN: 1461-7315
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/14614448241285562
OpenAlexW4403872200
LanguageEN
Citations received16
References cited77

This study proposes affordances for discursive opportunities (ADO) as a theoretical framework that leverages the concept of technological affordances and the theory of discursive opportunities to understand platform potential in shaping social media activism. Specifically, ADO underscores how social media platform affordances (e.g., algorithmic curation, shared group identity and culture, connectivity) shape movement visibility, resonance, and legitimacy, all of which can mobilize activism efforts. We further situate our discussion in the cross-platform context to explore both differences and interconnections between different platforms in facilitating digital activism. By analyzing 20,363,128 English posts related to the #MeToo movement from 2017 to 2020 on Twitter, Facebook, and Reddit using supervised machine learning and time series analysis, we reveal platform variations in affording discursive opportunities for visibility, resonance, and legitimacy, which shape activism efforts differently across platforms. We also find a unidirectional relationship from activism on Twitter and Reddit to activism on Facebook

Advertising · Affordance · Business · Human–computer interaction · Internet privacy · Media studies · Social media · Sociology · World Wide Web · Computer Science · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection · Social Media and Politics

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