Talk for the Preconference on Qualitative Political Communication Research | International Communication Association | May 22, 2014

1. CONTENTION BEYOND SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS:
Activism and its Benefits
Mary Joyce
MA Student | Department of Communication | University of Washington
ICA Pre-Conference on Qualitative Political Communication Research | May 22, 2014

2. ACTIVISM
A Nested Model
SOCIAL MOVEMENT
CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN
Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic
Individual actions not
part of collective tactics
Tactics not part of
campaigns
Campaigns not part of
social movements

3. ACTIVISM
SOCIAL MOVEMENT
CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN
Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic
The Current Scholarly Approach

4. ACTIVISM
An Alternative Approach
CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN CAMPAIGN
Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic Tactic
SOCIAL MOVEMENT

5. METHODS
Using Digital Accounts to Study Remote Activism Events
• Content analysis
• Global Digital Activism Data Set source
documents
• News stories describing 426 digital
campaigns in 100 countries from 2010-2012
• Main document sources: LexisNexis and
Global Voices Online
• Random sample of 100 campaigns from 61
countries drawn for this study
• Identification and collection of goal
statements in the texts

6. Assertive
Defensive
Proactively
Seeking
Benefits
Reactively
Removing
Threats
Proactively
Protecting
Benefits
Reactively
Preventing
Threats
Fortheresignation
of
PresidentSaleh
in
Yem
en
Foram
oratorium
on
deep
seaoildrilling
in
theUS
To
end
cargo
feelim
itations
affecting
truckersin
Colom
bia
To
punish
an
internet
troll’sharassm
ent
To
freea
political
prisoner
Vs. proposed
gay
death
penalty
in
Uganda
V
s. the sale of a looted
artifact in
the U
K
Vs. an upcom
ing
perform
ance by a
m
isogynistic singer in India
Vs. the planned
removal of urban
cattle in Hong Kong
Vs. planned
reductions in coal
subsidies in Spain
To
allow
M
exican
citizens
to
presentinitiativesdirectly
to
Congress
To
increasethenational
m
inim
um
w
agein
Egypt
To
recognize
m
inority
languages
in
France
[Em
ptyset]
[Em
ptyset]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
Reactive Proactive
Financial
Institutional
Physical
Psychological
Environmental
Benefits Provided by
Activism Campaigns

7. TAKEAWAYS
• Scholarly attention on social movement distracts attention from a wide array of
more numerous activism efforts.
• Online news accounts, particularly citizen journalism, are valuable for the qualitative
analysis of globally dispersed efforts.
• Reactive (threat-reducing) campaigns are far more common than proactive (benefit-
seeking) campaigns.
• More campaigns are organized around immediate threats, such as a planned
reduction of pension benefits, than abstract threats, such as global warming.

8. THANK YOU
Mary Joyce
MA Student | Department of Communication
University of Washington
@MetaActivism | mjoyce@uw,edu
This presentation is available @ www.meta-activism.org

9. Assertive
Defensive
Proactively
Seeking
Benefits
Reactively
Removing
Threats
Proactively
Protecting
Benefits
Reactively
Preventing
Threats
Fortheresignation
of
PresidentSaleh
in
Yem
en
Foram
oratorium
on
deep
seaoildrilling
in
theUS
To
end
cargo
feelim
itations
affecting
truckersin
Colom
bia
To
punish
an
internet
troll’sharassm
ent
To
freea
political
prisoner
Vs. proposed
gay
death
penalty
in
Uganda
V
s. the sale of a looted
artifact in
the U
K
Vs. an upcom
ing
perform
ance by a
m
isogynistic singer in India
Vs. the planned
removal of urban
cattle in Hong Kong
Vs. planned
reductions in coal
subsidies in Spain
To
allow
M
exican
citizens
to
presentinitiativesdirectly
to
Congress
To
increasethenational
m
inim
um
w
agein
Egypt
To
recognize
m
inority
languages
in
France
[Em
ptyset]
[Em
ptyset]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
[Empty set]
Reactive Proactive
Financial
Institutional
Physical
Psychological
Environmental
Benefits Provided by
Activism Campaigns