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: ,

76,747 Responses to “Methodologies V: Using and Analyzing Digital Media Sources”

  1. wyze cam v3 says:

    If you need help regarding how to fix wyze cam v3 Then no need to worry, learn our article on our website.

  2. What Companies are in the Consumer Services Field? The consumer services field is a broad and diverse category that includes companies providing goods and services to.
    What Companies are in the Consumer Services Field

  3. Thanks so much for sharing this awesome info! I am looking forward to see more postsby you! online assignment help

  4. I’m really satisfied to find this site. I need to thank you only for this stunning read.
    Advanced SystemCare Pro Crack

  5. Trucking Dump Trucks Trailers

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

  6. kids rideons says:

    When you are looking to buy toys for the children, you can often check out the stores like Amazon where you can find dozens of variety of kids toys. Especially these days, many are preferring for the kids cars and among them electric cars have become so popular among the children. If looking for the kids-electriccars.co.uk, then check out the store which offers the best affordable pricing and free delivery all across the UK. You will get the max number of toys

  7. Very nic Post .Thanks for your valuable and very useful information with the blog.
    I am appreciating with the way you shared the perfect information.
    Furthermore, I would like to Share some sound knowledge of
    asus wifi extender setup.

  8. I’ve seen some exceptionally supportive stuff. I tracked down a great deal of data, yet your article was the most alluring and brilliant. Heartstopper Outfits

  9. I’ve seen some exceptionally supportive stuff. I tracked down a great deal of data, yet your article was the most alluring and brilliant. Taxi Driver Jacket

  10. Found your post interesting to read. I cant wait to see your post soon. Good Luck for the upcoming update. This article is really very interesting and effective. top gun jacket

  11. Very nic Post .Thanks for your valuable and very useful information with the blog.
    I am appreciating with the way you shared the perfect information.
    Furthermore, I would like to Share some sound knowledge of
    belkin extender setup.

  12. Full stack designer SAP is a flexible calling that is popular. An accomplished proficient has top to bottom information on SAP® frameworks and their design. Such software engineers can work both on the frontend and backend of the innovation. A full stack web designer SAP needs to have a particular arrangement of abilities and capabilities to perform different complex undertakings and ensure all frameworks work impeccably. SAP® full stack engineer abilities and capabilities include: Information on all layers of SAP arrangements, data sets, business rationale, information capacity rehearses, proper libraries, systems, and conditions; Quite a while of involvement in SAP arrangements and SAP ABAP programming language;

    • hireiotdevelopers says:

      If your company need an aws iot services, you’ve come to the right spot! When it comes to hiring an Amazon Web Services professional, Ukraine is a fantastic alternative. The country has approximately 200,000 software engineers, many of whom have worked with IoT, including Amazon services. While they have some of the most competent developers in Eastern Europe, their prices are among the lowest, making them an attractive option for an AWS certified associate developer.

  13. ravi says:

    Liposuction works by eliminating the excess fat from the different body parts surgically. To perform the surgery, a device is used that suctions fat from underneath the skin without any additional requirements.https://medinicosmeticsurgery.com/liposuction-cost/

  14. vk betflix says:

    เพื่อให้ทางเพื่อน สมาชิก ของเว็บไซต์ vk betflix สล็อตออนไลน์ โบนัสไม่อั้น เว็บพนัน ออนไลน์ ที่ให้บริการ เกมสล็อต pg slot โดยตรง ได้เข้ามา เลือกเล่น betflix

  15. flat roof west bromwich

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

  16. results guru says:

    very nice website

  17. dump trucks near me

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

  18. http://Www.lehoma.com

    like water for chocolate » Assignments

  19. For the Linksys extender setup, go to the login page using http://extender.linksys.com. Once you enter the username and password, you will reach the Linksys extender dashboard. Scan for your wifi network and connect to it. At last, finalize the settings of your Linksys wifi extender and complete the setup.

  20. steel beam sizes chart pdf

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

  21. In today’s world people are very much stucked in their personal works, same is happening with the students that’s why we have strated the services of the Pay Someone To Do My Homework. Connect with us to avail this premium offer.
    https://greatassignmenthelper.com/pay-someone-to-do-my-homework/

  22. That’s a great blog. There are a lot of good writings. I really appreciate people like you. 토토사이트

  23. dump truck fleet service in Houston Texas

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

  24. http://www.survived.dofollowlinks.Org

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

  25. construction materials trucking broker

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

  26. moonrock kush
    Thanks for excellent information. Keep up the good work!

  27. Land Clearing Excavating service

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

  28. excavation haul out dirt service

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

  29. Jack Addy says:

    Ultimate and expert HP printer support
    Are you looking for an expert HP printers supports then we have a team of those technocrats. Leave all your problems and technical support on the shoulders of our technocrats. Our team of experts are highly experienced and technically qualified to cater any type of technical snag or support required for any type of HP printers available so far.

  30. slot nextspin

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

  31. Kaution says:

    Kaution

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

  32. Jack Thomas says:

    Really good content, keep it up

  33. Thanks for sharing the info. I located the information very useful. That’s a brilliant story you posted. I will come back to read some more. Feel free to visit my website; 카지노사이트

  34. I found your blog while I was webs writing to find the above information. Your writing has helped me a lot. I’ll write a nice post by quoting your post. Feel free to visit my website; 바카라사이트

  35. I’ve been following your web site for some time now and finally, I decided to write this post in order to thank you for providing us such a fine content!!! Feel free to visit my website; 바카라사이트

  36. I am somewhat certain I’ll be informed plenty of new stuff right here! Good luck for the following!
    personality development training

  37. David says:

    Hello, my name is David john, and I’m from the United States. Since 2005, I’ve been an expert business lender and associate professional, And I provide MCA Leads in the business leads world, and it’s also my pleasure you can buy [url=https://businessleadsworld.com/] MCA Leads [/url] at a really affordable price from the US.

  38. davidjohn says:

    Hello, my name is David john, and I’m from the United States. Since 2005, I’ve been an expert business lender and associate professional, And I provide MCA Leads in the business leads world, and it’s also my pleasure you can buy [url=https://businessleadsworld.com/] MCA Leads [/url] at a really affordable price from the US.

  39. partyland says:

    partyland

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

  40. Polka Dot Magic Mushroom Chocolate Bar

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

  41. David Watson says:

    Any airline, even United Airlines, may charge a fee and have a difficult cancellation process. However, the only other option is to cancel your flight reservation when circumstances are unavoidable. You have come to the correct spot if you have a reservation with United Airlines and wish to cancel your tickets. Today, we’ll explain what United Airlines’ cancellation policy is, how it applies in the wake of COVID-19, and a number of other crucial details. Continue reading to learn more about the laws that apply to your particular circumstances.

  42. Jazz says:

    riches777 ค่ายเกมส์จาก slot pg อันดับหนึ่งของไทย รับเครดิตฟรี ไม่ติดเรื่องฝากขั้นต่ำ สามารถถอนได้ไม่จำกัด หรือ ฝากหลักร้อย แต่ถอนหลักล้าน

  43. This article is truly outstanding throughout the entire existence of articles. I’m a ‘Article’ gatherer and I some of the time read them fascinating. Top Gun Penny Benjamin Jacket

Leave a Reply to kids rideons Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published.