Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

When dealing with social media platforms as spaces of activism these sites can be innovative, powerful, and fast-moving at best, and at its worst chaotic and unfocused. The line between these two distinctions is actually slighter than one might realize. This understanding of cyber activism became clearer when faced with the question “What is contemporary ‘blacktivism’ according to Facebook/Twitter/Tumblr/Instagram?”

Being a avid user of the popular blogging platform, Tumblr, and as such well-versed in the language and etiquette of the site, I sought my answer through my dashboard. Tumblr is composed of a endless scroll, comparable to Facebook’s newsfeed, that displays every user you ‘follow”s posts that can consist of either a link, photo, video, mp3, or text file that can be organized by ‘tags’. Like Twitter, there is a give and take between control: you cannot control what users post, but you can control who you follow. You ultimately build up the queue of information displayed on your dashboard.

This rule of thumb on Tumblr already an issue in itself, as it’s not only necessary to have an account to view such information, but it also requires stock knowledge of which users promote social activism the most. Already in this way, Tumblr blacktivism is exclusive in the broader sense of the term.  However because I am an established user of 5 years, this constraint only appeared in my thoughts after my study.

Taking into account the formatting and style of the website (and the advantage of 5 years of knowledge), I began my study of 30 minutes scrolling down my dashboard sure that out of my selected 500 some users one would surely post something under the activism tree. After about a minute of scrolling I saw a linked post that described the new case of Ebola in Liberia as an STD. The random post was one centered on awareness, not truly giving a solution to a possible rebirth of the Ebola crisis. And for a while this was the only post I saw. Because Tumblr is composed as a live feed, the minutes I scrolled down the dashboard before I encountered another post for social justice felt like eons.

It wasn’t until I encountered a post by a rather prominent Tumblr user in both the black and activist circles that my research progressed. This individual posted a series of inforgraphics that described the various levels of Israeli settlement on Palestinian territory, the fraught Palestinian citizenship across Israel and Palestine, and general problematic restriction of Palestinian people. The post was significantly informative as most portrayals of Palestine capitalize on the destruction of the Gaza Strip rather than the conditions that provide for this kind of environment, and the surrounding oppressions widespread through out the country. I then opened up another tab in my web browser to later peruse the user’s account, sure of the rich content in store, simultaneously still looking for another possible user to study. Right underneath their post Micdotcom, an active news source, posted GIFs of Porsha Olayiwola’s  poem that criticizes the misogynoir latent in police brutality discourse and the general dismissal of the pain black women face at the hands of black men.

Having at least two users under my belt and just ten minutes left of study, I decided to quickly delve deeper into each site. The first user’s activism centered mostly on the personal: crowdfunding for a poor black transwoman, a black family nearing homelessness, and written text posts that criticize various tangents of their multiple jeopardies as a queer transman of color. The text posts all had a least a thousand ‘notes’, which consisted of either likes or ‘reblogs’ (when users repost the content to their blogs). Furthermore you could see a constant rapport developing on these text posts that pursued discourse or fermented friendships. On this given users page the queer community of color was strong and accounted for. Switching tabs to Micdotcom, the website served as a curated collection of black internet activism across platforms. Screenshots of tweets raising awareness against recent police brutalities (#JusticeforJason, #SayHerName to name a couple), gifs of award shows and videos, news clips, and original Tumblr user posts decorated the page. Micdotcom served as a hub of generalized activism rather than specific black communal activist space.

It is in this way that Tumblr both triumphs and fails as a platform for social change. On one hand the site is a space for endless possibilities that allow for news sources and user-created online ‘zines to provide a constant stream of information crucial for social justice. These carefully curated hubs of information are a great start for both users and visitors of Tumblr. One does not need membership to view or message the copious amount of blogs present on the site. However their existence does not necessitate the existence of black community on Tumblr, individual users do. One would need to follow both prominent and random bloggers in the black community on Tumblr. These bloggers, your chosen informants, brothers, and sisters dictate your involvement with blacktivism. They raise causes for “Black Tumblr” to rally against, to raise money for, or even formally petition against on “Change.org”. These bloggers can help you through your journey of understanding matrices of oppression in your daily life, as well as navigate questions of gender/sexual/racial identity through direct messages, text posts, photos and videos open for commentary…..provided that you follow them. In addition to this slight oversight black users cannot be streamlined in the fighting of antiblackness. Some users are a part of “Queer Tumblr” or “Transgender Tumblr”or the dreaded “Barbershop Tumblr” (a part of Tumblr which is characterized by pro-black homophobic misogynoiristic users). Various pockets of Tumblr wholesale ignore some oppressions, such as colorism, to maintain their privilege and membership to the black community simultaneously. Tumblr can be a place rife with the schisms that plague physical activist spaces.

Ethical issues aside, in this sort of research Tumblr even fails in organization. Like Twitter it employs the hashtag system to organize posts, in order to make searches easier for users and non-users, however unlike Twitter, these tags are hardly agreed upon and are used liberally. Users sometimes use the tag system to input their commentary to protect the aesthetic integrity of a post. This so-called ‘talking in the tags’ makes for a chaotic black hole of information that can only be retrieved if you search that particular blogger’s archive. Tumblr has the potential to be a mess of epic proportion.

Ultimately Tumblr as a space for cyber black activism continuously toes the line of innovation and chaos. The ample opportunity for commentary and grassroot movement give Tumblr the chance to make virtual spaces of social justice bleed into the real world. However this is constantly mired by the disorganization, petty squabbles between users, and randomization of posts that is present on the site.

Word Count: 1138

 

Tags: ,

78,759 Responses to “Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources”

  1. kam says:

    will come of the move, as the ICC has no powers to arrest suspects without the co-operation of a country’s government Russia is not an ICC member country, meaning the court has no authority there However, it could affect Mr Putin in other ways, such as being unable to travel internationally. He could now be arrested if he sets foot in any of the court’s 123 member states Mr Putin is only the third president to be issued with an ICC arrest warrant ” แทงบอล

  2. kam says:

    sway in the US, the issuing of the warrant “makes a very strong point” His administration had already “formally determined” that Russia had committed war crimes during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, with Vice-President Kamala Harris saying in February that those involved would “be held to account” The United Nations also released a report earlier this week that found Moscow’s forced removal of Ukrainian children to areas under its control amounted to a war crime แทงบอล

  3. Video about rextender

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  4. Exactly what I was searching for, appreciate it for putting up.
    비아그라 구매

  5. allphotolenses.com

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  6. kam says:

    had reasonable grounds to believe Mr Putin committed the criminal acts directly, as well as working with others. It also accused him of failing to use his presidential powers to stop children being deported Analysis: Will Putin ever face a war crimes trial? Explainer: What war crimes is Russia accused of? Explainer: What is the International Criminal Court? Russia’s commissioner for children’s rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, is also wanted by the ICC for the same crimes แทงบอล

  7. kam says:

    the warrants were “based upon forensic evidence, scrutiny and what’s been said by those two individuals” The court had initially considered keeping the arrest warrants a secret, but decided to make them public to try and stop further crimes being committed “Children can’t be treated as the spoils of war, they can’t be deported,” Mr Khan told the BBC “This type of crime doesn’t need one to be a lawyer, one needs to be a human being to know how egregious it is แทงบอล

  8. ท็อป says:

    คาสิโนเว็บตรง
    allone88 สามารถเข้าร่วมสนุกได้ เว็บสล็อตแตกบ่อย ทุกสถานที่ ไม่มีจำกัด เปิดให้ฝากเงินเข้าเดิมพันได้แบบไม่มีขั้นต่ำ

  9. maverick adrew says:

    MetaMask is a popular cryptocurrency wallet that enables users to store, manage and interact with various cryptocurrencies and decentralized applications (dApps) on the Ethereum blockchain. It is a browser extension that is available for Google Chrome, Firefox, Brave, and Edge.
    Visit here:- MetaMask Sign In

  10. คาสิโน คาสิโน เล่นพนันทั้งวันแบบไม่น่าเบื่ออีกต่อไป จ่ายเงินให้ 100 บาท ในครั้งแรกที่ทดลองเล่นเกมสล็อต

  11. This is an excellent post I seen thanks to share it. It is really what I wanted to see hope in future you will continue for sharing such a excellent post. I will really appreciate the writer’s choice for choosing this excellent article appropriate to my 스포츠토토 matter.Here is deep description about the article matter which helped me more. I see some amazingly important and kept up to length of your strength searching for in your on the site

  12. codeavail says:

    Our goal is to provide top-quality cloud computing assignment help to students who need it most, so they can achieve their academic goals and succeed in their careers.

  13. FindAPK says:

    In summary, FindAPK is an excellent resource for Android users looking to download free and safe APK files. With a vast library of content, a user-friendly interface, and regular updates, FindAPK is a one-stop-shop for all your APK needs.

  14. To trade on crypto.com exchange, you just need to log in to your account through the crypto.com sign in details. Once you log in, you can click on the “Trade” option which is available on the home page. Now, from the pop-up that appears, you need to choose one from the “Buy” or “Sell” tab. Further, follow the upcoming prompts to start trading.

  15. Wow, incredible blog format! How lengthy have you been blogging for? you make running a blog glance easy. The full glance of your site is fantastic, as smartly the content material!..hi was just seeing if you minded a 메이저놀이터 comment. i like your website and the thme you picked is super. I will be back

  16. pictures about arts

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  17. The securities may not be sold until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer mapping exercise provides a strong foundation for forthcoming draft rules for crypto.

  18. MetaMask is a popular crypto wallet that most investors use to execute their actions relating to the trade of digital assets. However, the mobile app is the most adaptable form of accessing the wallet. we will learn

  19. MetaMask is a popular crypto wallet that most investors use to execute their actions relating to the trade of digital assets. However, the mobile app is the most adaptable form of accessing the wallet. we will learn how to access this wallet.

  20. crypto assets, users can trade around 250 coins on this platform. Also, your crypto.com sign in credentials gives you a sure short access to a variety of other trading features exchange is not limited to crypto trading.

  21. Thomas says:

    Many celebrity biography are actually written by ghostwriters – skilled writers who work behind the scenes to bring the stories of famous individuals to life. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at the role of ghostwriters in celebrity biographies and what it takes to succeed in this unique field.

  22. xo777 says:

    xo777

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  23. Quickswap says:

    Quickswap is built on the Ethereum network and offers lightning-fast transactions at a fraction of the cost of other DEXs

  24. precio funerarias valladolid

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  25. Get free assignment help from experts. Our experts offer assignments on various topics. We will provide you with some services at zero cost. Contact us now.

  26. Xây dựng Hải Phòng says:

    Công ty TNHH xây dựng và thương mại quốc tế Á Đông xin được gửi đến Quý khách hàng lời chúc sức khỏe, lời chào trân trọng và hợp tác. Xem thêm: Á Đông

  27. Learn more says:

    Learn more

    like water for chocolate » Assignments

  28. http://www.wifeporn.pro

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  29. content marketing specialist in top5choose

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  30. profile of an wifi extender specialist

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  31. Buy Edibles Online Canada
    This web site provides amazing layout, keep it up.

  32. 라이브바카라

    like water for chocolate » Assignments

  33. KatherineC says:

    we will discuss the different methods that can be used to analyze and use digital media sources. There are many different methods that can be used to get information about a specific topic. In this section, I will focus on the most popular method – Google Analytics. Most students are drawn to these types of articles and information, but they are unable to prepare for their exams, If you have been struggling with your exams and want assistance, hire someone to do my online class is dedicated to helping students get higher grades on their examinations by providing them with the best available resources, including quality academic services.

  34. https://fr.grepolis.com/

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  35. Call Girls Mandla

    blog topic

  36. fr curtains says:

    fr curtains

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  37. The next thing you need to do is to make sure that you smell good. This means that you should use a good cologne or perfume. You should also make sure that your breath smells good.

  38. profile aboutmarjorie martin

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  39. Profile About A Wifi Specialist

    like water for chocolate » Blog Archive » Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources

  40. Curtain says:

    Thanks for sharing your experience and thoughts. Waiting for other stuff. Meanwhile you can visit my page, it’s about konsultan pajak. Thanks again

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.