The document discusses how hashtags on social media have been used to promote political campaigns, commemorate significant events, and support social movements. It provides examples of how hashtags like #Romnesia, #Debate, and #JapanQuake spread information about political elections, natural disasters, and the #HeForShe gender equality campaign launched by Emma Watson. Hashtags have become an influential tool for spreading news and ideas on social media faster than traditional news outlets. They help organize related posts and make information easily searchable.
Propaganda is a book that focuses mainly on the intelligent manipulation of planned habits and opinions in order to influence the masses in a democratic society
I created this presentation to present the need for use of social media in our cancer center. It is specific to this center but can be easily adapted. The similar presentation is more general and has some copyrighted material in it. There is no copyrighted material in this despite my forgetting to take that notation out of the last slide.
Propaganda is a book that focuses mainly on the intelligent manipulation of planned habits and opinions in order to influence the masses in a democratic society
I created this presentation to present the need for use of social media in our cancer center. It is specific to this center but can be easily adapted. The similar presentation is more general and has some copyrighted material in it. There is no copyrighted material in this despite my forgetting to take that notation out of the last slide.
Social media for public information officers. Why it's naturally tough for government agencies to participate in social media, but why it's also necessary. Presented to the City of Portland, OR public information officers in September 2009. WARNING: May contain references to James Madison, Federalist No. 10, and other civics geekery.
#WhyIStayed #WhyILeft social media analysisSoCo Partners
Nearly 200K posts and mentions covered the backlash on social media against the victim-blaming of Ray Rice's fiancee last September. Big Mountain Data was listening.
Skilled facilitation is key for effective philanthropic leaders, whether you are raising money or giving it away. From staff meetings to board meetings, from grantee convenings to funder collaboratives, being able to confidently lead meetings of all types strengthens your work and makes it more productive and enjoyable. There are concrete skills and philosophical approaches that skilled facilitation brings that helps - in a power-laden field - truly equalize dialogue, give under-represented voices greater power, and bring together diverse stakeholders working towards shared visions. During this webinar, Janice Simsohn Shaw shared with us the specific tools and frameworks that make her such a skilled facilitator.
Speaker:
• Janice Simsohn Shaw, Senior Program Director, Exponent Philanthropy
Kaelan Wong Professor Gina Gemmel English 161 Dece.docxcroysierkathey
Kaelan Wong
Professor Gina Gemmel
English 161
December 12, 2017
Social Media’s Victory in the 2016 Presidential Election
There has been a lot of talk since the 2016 presidential election because of how unique it
was compared to all the previous ones. Only recently has social media started to play a
significant role in political campaigns, which can clearly be seen with Donald trump’s campaign
in the 2016 election. This paper examines articles written by Michael Barbaro and Christine
Lagorio-Chafkin for the New York Times alongside academic journals written by Gunn Enli and
Frida Ghitis for the European Journal of Communications and the World Politics Review,
respectively. Regarding social media, many tend to focus on its rise in popular culture, the
following of people of people that it tends to bring, and its use by the candidate or its political
party. Although there are people who argue that Trump’s political views and ideologies are what
gave him an advantage, Trump’s social media is what led him to victory.
For one thing, it is clear that social media is generally on the rise in society, today. A
majority of researchers would agree that the rise of social media has been prominent in these past
few years. Michael Barbaro, author of “Pithy, Mean, and Powerful: Donald Trump Mastered
Twitter for 2016,” states how social media is free and can relay information to the public in a
quick way. Barbaro points out how this can be useful, especially as it slowly substitutes for
“costly, conventional” methods. As an example, Barbaro mentions how rival campaigns
acknowledge the advantage Trump has because of his millions of Twitter followers and how he
gets more mentions and retweets compared to other candidates. Gunn Enli, author of “Twitter as
Student 2
Arena for the Authentic Outsider: Exploring the Social Media Campaigns of Trump and Clinton
in the 2016 US Presidential Election,” takes this further, believing that social media can easily
reach the masses and serve as a main source of information. Enli reminds us that new platforms
have emerged while existing ones have expanded. Christin Lagorio-Chafkin, author of “Reddit
and the God Emperor of the Internet,” has a more specific focus on social media, claiming that
Reddit has become one of the most significant websites on the internet. Lagorio-Chafkin
observes how Trump’s subreddit “The_Donald” has gained around 300,000 members (It has
over half a million now as of October 2017). On the other hand, Frida Ghitis, author of “Trump’s
Victory Was Aided by Russia’s Weaponized Social Media Campaign,” takes on a different
focus: WikiLeaks. Arguably a type of social media, WikiLeaks grew to a significant size such
that it could be used to weaponize information. While all four authors believe that social media is
on the rise, Barbaro and Enli focused on Twitter’s rise. On the other hand, Lagorio-Chafkin puts
his focus on Reddit’s ...
Social Media and PoliticsLearning objectivesLearning objec.docxjensgosney
Social Media and Politics
Learning objectives
Learning objectives include an understanding of the following:
· The role of social media in democracy
· The role of social media in advancing political reforms
· How social media create polarization
Introduction
Social Media are now a central component of democracy. The media are increasingly associated with political organizing, elections campaigns, accountability, and generally a more engaged citizenry. Social media are a dominant platform through which everyday citizens can share, organize, and communicate their ideas. People regularly use the media to acquire information about leaders and public policy related areas like the environment, education, health and so on. Many public offices now have websites that include social media functions in their communication with the public. Collectively, social media provide a public sphere where individuals can interact with likeminded people on political issues and provide criticism and support for leaders. However, while social media platforms make many issues accessible to increasingly large groups, the media have the potential to create polarization. Specifically, many blogs are quite subjective while some forms of media promote hatred and intolerance. Additionally, it is also difficult to examine the extent to which social media really alters public opinion as more research is needed. Lastly, questions remain on how much time users are prepared to devote their time on the social media for political problems.
Social Media and Elections
Popular social networks have transformed the use of the internet as a political tool for democratic transitions. Barack Obama’s historic in 2008 win was attributed to a new media strategy inspired by popular networks such as MySpace and Facebook. The campaign’s website My.BarackObama.com, allows supporters to join local groups, create events, sign up for updates and set up personal fund-raising pages. The campaign was spearheaded by Chris Hughes, a co-founder of Facebook. The social networks helped Obama raise more than two million donations of less than $200 each (Stelter, 2008). This success was based on huge investments on social media. The campaign spent $3 million on online advertising that targeted potential voters and online tools providing details of voting locations (Stelter, 2008).
Similarly, social media was extensively used in Canada’s 2011 elections. The elections were dubbed the “social media elections” or “election 2.0.” Harris (2011) observed that the social media served as “a one-stop shopping for parodies, speech remixes, gotcha moments, unconventional ads, and attacks so fiery, they risk scorching your computer monitor.” Two "vote mob" videos simultaneously held spots in the Top 10 on YouTube. A satirical video juxtaposing a Harper speech with an address by Star Wars' evil Emperor Palpatine drew more than 114,000. The University of Guelph's "vote mob" videos were viewed more than 33,000 .
The last few years have witnessed a change in how and why social media channels are used. What initially started as a fad is evolving into a tool for bringing about social change. Today it is the Occupy Wall Street movement; tomorrow it could be something else.
This presentation is an informal discussion of some use of social media in the Egyptian revolution Jan. 25- Feb. 11, 2011 (Slides 4-8 are prepared by Khaled Shaheen)
In the present times, social media is one such platform which has been useful in connecting the people throughout the world. Be it a personal interaction, a product promotion, an advertisement or a political campaign, social media has formed to be the best platform to connect to people globally. In this report the discussion will be focused on the how and why the social media has been used as the medium for political campaigns in offices. The importance of social media for political campaigns will be analyzed and discussed. Thus the research will be focused on the role of social media in political engagement. There will be analysis of how the new age media has increased the possibilities to the ideal situation for political campaign
Mae Khoory International DevelopmentReflection Paper 3 Dr. IPazSilviapm
Mae Khoory
International Development
Reflection Paper 3
Dr. Indrakshi Tandon
Critique the relationship between international financial institutions (i.e. the World Bank and the IMF) and developing nations, and their promotion of neoliberal economic policies.
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund has expanded their global reach and exert a great amount of influence when dealing with foreign countries and their internal affairs. These financial institutions hold a lot of power when it comes to determining the future of a developing country (or any country whether rich or poor, that took a loan from them). A great example of how these financial institutions utilize their power is the in documentary watched in class, which exhibited the IMF and the Suharto Regime, their relations, what went wrong and the consequences suffered.
Just a brief summary of both financial institutions, the World Bank was founded at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference (also known as the Bretton Woods Conference) in 1944. The International Monetary Fund was also founded alongside the World Bank in 1945, which was in the end of World War II. These financial institutions followed the Bretton Woods system; this system was used to control the value of money between countries. They were established in an era where the political climate was completely different than the current political climate. At the beginning, their aim was to help developing countries emerge from poverty and instability, but that slowly changed into an aggressive implementation of neoliberal economic policies that did more harm than good to the underdeveloped countries.
After gathering information and building up a fundamental idea of both these financial institutions and their forceful implementation of neoliberal policies on developing countries; I have concluded that developing countries are the puppets of these financial institutions, and these financial institutions are the puppets of the neoliberal “regime”. Firstly, why do I say neoliberal “regime”? Let us begin by defining a regime. In politics, a regime is a form of government (or a set of rules) that shapes the procedures of a government and its relationship with the society. In this case, the regime consists of private and powerful individuals who own large and powerful corporations that permit control for their own interests in order to gain profit; they shape the procedures of the (underdeveloped) society. I am pointing out the fact that these financial institutions use neoliberal policies as a form of governing on a country.
Why do I say puppet? In regards to the developing country’s relationship with these institutions, they fell into the hands of these powerful entities in (most likely) the desperation of their need for money. After being loaned the money, the IMF and the World Bank are able to control these countries’ internal affairs because now, they have a say in how they should use that money. Wher ...
Social media for public information officers. Why it's naturally tough for government agencies to participate in social media, but why it's also necessary. Presented to the City of Portland, OR public information officers in September 2009. WARNING: May contain references to James Madison, Federalist No. 10, and other civics geekery.
#WhyIStayed #WhyILeft social media analysisSoCo Partners
Nearly 200K posts and mentions covered the backlash on social media against the victim-blaming of Ray Rice's fiancee last September. Big Mountain Data was listening.
Skilled facilitation is key for effective philanthropic leaders, whether you are raising money or giving it away. From staff meetings to board meetings, from grantee convenings to funder collaboratives, being able to confidently lead meetings of all types strengthens your work and makes it more productive and enjoyable. There are concrete skills and philosophical approaches that skilled facilitation brings that helps - in a power-laden field - truly equalize dialogue, give under-represented voices greater power, and bring together diverse stakeholders working towards shared visions. During this webinar, Janice Simsohn Shaw shared with us the specific tools and frameworks that make her such a skilled facilitator.
Speaker:
• Janice Simsohn Shaw, Senior Program Director, Exponent Philanthropy
Kaelan Wong Professor Gina Gemmel English 161 Dece.docxcroysierkathey
Kaelan Wong
Professor Gina Gemmel
English 161
December 12, 2017
Social Media’s Victory in the 2016 Presidential Election
There has been a lot of talk since the 2016 presidential election because of how unique it
was compared to all the previous ones. Only recently has social media started to play a
significant role in political campaigns, which can clearly be seen with Donald trump’s campaign
in the 2016 election. This paper examines articles written by Michael Barbaro and Christine
Lagorio-Chafkin for the New York Times alongside academic journals written by Gunn Enli and
Frida Ghitis for the European Journal of Communications and the World Politics Review,
respectively. Regarding social media, many tend to focus on its rise in popular culture, the
following of people of people that it tends to bring, and its use by the candidate or its political
party. Although there are people who argue that Trump’s political views and ideologies are what
gave him an advantage, Trump’s social media is what led him to victory.
For one thing, it is clear that social media is generally on the rise in society, today. A
majority of researchers would agree that the rise of social media has been prominent in these past
few years. Michael Barbaro, author of “Pithy, Mean, and Powerful: Donald Trump Mastered
Twitter for 2016,” states how social media is free and can relay information to the public in a
quick way. Barbaro points out how this can be useful, especially as it slowly substitutes for
“costly, conventional” methods. As an example, Barbaro mentions how rival campaigns
acknowledge the advantage Trump has because of his millions of Twitter followers and how he
gets more mentions and retweets compared to other candidates. Gunn Enli, author of “Twitter as
Student 2
Arena for the Authentic Outsider: Exploring the Social Media Campaigns of Trump and Clinton
in the 2016 US Presidential Election,” takes this further, believing that social media can easily
reach the masses and serve as a main source of information. Enli reminds us that new platforms
have emerged while existing ones have expanded. Christin Lagorio-Chafkin, author of “Reddit
and the God Emperor of the Internet,” has a more specific focus on social media, claiming that
Reddit has become one of the most significant websites on the internet. Lagorio-Chafkin
observes how Trump’s subreddit “The_Donald” has gained around 300,000 members (It has
over half a million now as of October 2017). On the other hand, Frida Ghitis, author of “Trump’s
Victory Was Aided by Russia’s Weaponized Social Media Campaign,” takes on a different
focus: WikiLeaks. Arguably a type of social media, WikiLeaks grew to a significant size such
that it could be used to weaponize information. While all four authors believe that social media is
on the rise, Barbaro and Enli focused on Twitter’s rise. On the other hand, Lagorio-Chafkin puts
his focus on Reddit’s ...
Social Media and PoliticsLearning objectivesLearning objec.docxjensgosney
Social Media and Politics
Learning objectives
Learning objectives include an understanding of the following:
· The role of social media in democracy
· The role of social media in advancing political reforms
· How social media create polarization
Introduction
Social Media are now a central component of democracy. The media are increasingly associated with political organizing, elections campaigns, accountability, and generally a more engaged citizenry. Social media are a dominant platform through which everyday citizens can share, organize, and communicate their ideas. People regularly use the media to acquire information about leaders and public policy related areas like the environment, education, health and so on. Many public offices now have websites that include social media functions in their communication with the public. Collectively, social media provide a public sphere where individuals can interact with likeminded people on political issues and provide criticism and support for leaders. However, while social media platforms make many issues accessible to increasingly large groups, the media have the potential to create polarization. Specifically, many blogs are quite subjective while some forms of media promote hatred and intolerance. Additionally, it is also difficult to examine the extent to which social media really alters public opinion as more research is needed. Lastly, questions remain on how much time users are prepared to devote their time on the social media for political problems.
Social Media and Elections
Popular social networks have transformed the use of the internet as a political tool for democratic transitions. Barack Obama’s historic in 2008 win was attributed to a new media strategy inspired by popular networks such as MySpace and Facebook. The campaign’s website My.BarackObama.com, allows supporters to join local groups, create events, sign up for updates and set up personal fund-raising pages. The campaign was spearheaded by Chris Hughes, a co-founder of Facebook. The social networks helped Obama raise more than two million donations of less than $200 each (Stelter, 2008). This success was based on huge investments on social media. The campaign spent $3 million on online advertising that targeted potential voters and online tools providing details of voting locations (Stelter, 2008).
Similarly, social media was extensively used in Canada’s 2011 elections. The elections were dubbed the “social media elections” or “election 2.0.” Harris (2011) observed that the social media served as “a one-stop shopping for parodies, speech remixes, gotcha moments, unconventional ads, and attacks so fiery, they risk scorching your computer monitor.” Two "vote mob" videos simultaneously held spots in the Top 10 on YouTube. A satirical video juxtaposing a Harper speech with an address by Star Wars' evil Emperor Palpatine drew more than 114,000. The University of Guelph's "vote mob" videos were viewed more than 33,000 .
The last few years have witnessed a change in how and why social media channels are used. What initially started as a fad is evolving into a tool for bringing about social change. Today it is the Occupy Wall Street movement; tomorrow it could be something else.
This presentation is an informal discussion of some use of social media in the Egyptian revolution Jan. 25- Feb. 11, 2011 (Slides 4-8 are prepared by Khaled Shaheen)
In the present times, social media is one such platform which has been useful in connecting the people throughout the world. Be it a personal interaction, a product promotion, an advertisement or a political campaign, social media has formed to be the best platform to connect to people globally. In this report the discussion will be focused on the how and why the social media has been used as the medium for political campaigns in offices. The importance of social media for political campaigns will be analyzed and discussed. Thus the research will be focused on the role of social media in political engagement. There will be analysis of how the new age media has increased the possibilities to the ideal situation for political campaign
Mae Khoory International DevelopmentReflection Paper 3 Dr. IPazSilviapm
Mae Khoory
International Development
Reflection Paper 3
Dr. Indrakshi Tandon
Critique the relationship between international financial institutions (i.e. the World Bank and the IMF) and developing nations, and their promotion of neoliberal economic policies.
The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund has expanded their global reach and exert a great amount of influence when dealing with foreign countries and their internal affairs. These financial institutions hold a lot of power when it comes to determining the future of a developing country (or any country whether rich or poor, that took a loan from them). A great example of how these financial institutions utilize their power is the in documentary watched in class, which exhibited the IMF and the Suharto Regime, their relations, what went wrong and the consequences suffered.
Just a brief summary of both financial institutions, the World Bank was founded at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference (also known as the Bretton Woods Conference) in 1944. The International Monetary Fund was also founded alongside the World Bank in 1945, which was in the end of World War II. These financial institutions followed the Bretton Woods system; this system was used to control the value of money between countries. They were established in an era where the political climate was completely different than the current political climate. At the beginning, their aim was to help developing countries emerge from poverty and instability, but that slowly changed into an aggressive implementation of neoliberal economic policies that did more harm than good to the underdeveloped countries.
After gathering information and building up a fundamental idea of both these financial institutions and their forceful implementation of neoliberal policies on developing countries; I have concluded that developing countries are the puppets of these financial institutions, and these financial institutions are the puppets of the neoliberal “regime”. Firstly, why do I say neoliberal “regime”? Let us begin by defining a regime. In politics, a regime is a form of government (or a set of rules) that shapes the procedures of a government and its relationship with the society. In this case, the regime consists of private and powerful individuals who own large and powerful corporations that permit control for their own interests in order to gain profit; they shape the procedures of the (underdeveloped) society. I am pointing out the fact that these financial institutions use neoliberal policies as a form of governing on a country.
Why do I say puppet? In regards to the developing country’s relationship with these institutions, they fell into the hands of these powerful entities in (most likely) the desperation of their need for money. After being loaned the money, the IMF and the World Bank are able to control these countries’ internal affairs because now, they have a say in how they should use that money. Wher ...
The phenomenon of interest may be described as the extent to which social media may be used inpolitical campaigns, including past campaigns and future campaigns. This includes four main questions: (1) Was there significant use of social media in past political campaigns, namely the 2008 campaign of President Barack Obama? (2) Has social media continued to be used in subsequent political campaigns? (3) If social media has been used, have there been any problems with its use? (4) What is the best way to utilize social media in future political campaigns?
37 role of social media in political and regime change the college studyMary Smith
It is an educational blog and intended to serve as complete and self-contained work on essays, paragraph, speeches, articles, letters, stories, quotes.
https://www.thecollegestudy.net/
The Meaning of Selfies: Understanding the use of selfies during the US 2016 P...Henri Ghosn
This report attempts to give a holistic approach to understanding the use of selfies during the US 2016 Primary Elections, taking into account their wider social, cultural, and media contexts. As such this project moves beyond the framing of selfies as a narcissistic practice and highlights instead how they promote “individuality, immediacy, reciprocity, sharing, exchanging, constant updating, work and commitment”.
Donald Trump and other politicians are using social media to bypass the media and get their message straight to the public. So what can news organizations do to get their political content noticed? In this interactive session, panelists will share their experiences and research on what makes news content – specifically political content – go viral. Attendees will leave with new, creative ideas for how to better reach their social media audience ahead of the 2018 election.
1. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
The Power of the #Hashtag
When a social media user thinks of hashtags, his mind might turn to the tweet he sent
earlier (“Standing up while doing homework because otherwise I’d fall asleep
#TheStruggleIsReal #CollegeLife”), or his mind might turn to the top trends he glanced through
on Twitter ten minutes ago (#5SOSFallon, #JakesBigNewsTonight). A typical social media user
rarely thinks of the ways that hashtags on social media have globally stimulated ideas and alerted
about issues. The power of the hashtag has been employed to promote political campaigns,
commemorate significant worldwide events, and kick start social movements.
Recently, political campaigns have integrated social media and hashtags. Barack
Obama’s political campaign has gone down in history as the first time social media, hashtags
included, made a significant difference in a political campaign. In the 2012 election especially,
hashtags played an important role. In fact, #Obama is one of the most popular political hashtags
to date. More specifically though, both Obama, who carried with him a significant social media
following from his 2008 campaign, and Mitt Romney had what Bloomsberg.com labeled as
“#Hashtagwars” during the election process. When President Barack Obama christened Mitt
Romney’s policy modifications as “Romnesia,” #Romnesia was trending worldwide within
twenty-four hours (Goldman). Also, during an Obama/Romney debate, Romney “said...that he
ordered up ‘binders full of women’ to bring gender diversity to his Massachusetts cabinet,” and
within minutes, a hashtag had appeared, organizing the Twitter posts, Facebook posts, and
memes about his controversial statement (Goldman). Even more generally, during the two
candidates’ debates, Americans were posting using #Debate up to 400 thousand times (Doctor).
President Barack Obama’s 2008 election was the first to introduce serious marketing through
social media, and in the 2012 election, he stepped up his game, paid attention to hashtags,
2. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
interacted with other accounts (like Romney’s), and gave people things to post and repost about
using common hashtags as an organizing method.
President Obama’s campaign kick started social media and hashtag usage not only for
presidential campaigns but also for politics in general. An article from Salesforce Marketing
said, “The trend now involves the use of increasingly creative hashtags from both the Democrats
and the Republicans taking direct aim at each other’s positions on policy.” Politicians strive to
have their hashtags gain enough attention to be noticed by news outlets or to be listed on
Twitter’s top trends. In fact, according to Twitter Media, in government and political tweets,
tweets with hashtags receive thirty percent more retweets than tweets without hashtags receive.
Statistics like this one encourage politicians to use hashtags on social media to argue, promote,
and inform.
Hashtags also played a role in the 2011 Japan earthquake and tsunami, especially in
informing. The natural disaster created a global social media stir in its aftermath. After the
earthquake, worried family and friends overloaded the cellular and landline networks in search of
learning information about loved ones. When they realized telephoning was not working, people
jumped on something that was – the Internet and, more specifically, social media. In fact, Twitter
was exploding with 1,200 tweets a minute coming out of Tokyo shortly after the earthquake
(“Twitter Once Again Proves Its Worth in Japan Earthquake Aftermath”). This mass amount of
tweets inspired Twitter Japan to publish specific hashtags, in both English and Japanese, geared
toward organizing the incredible amount of posts. For example, if the tweet was about general
earthquake information, one could use #Jishin; if the tweet was requesting rescue, one could use
#J_j_helpme. Twitter Japan also listed hashtags for evacuation and medical information (#Hinan,
#311care) as well as verification of individuals’ safety (#Anpi). According to a chart by Topsy,
3. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
the hashtags were successful, with #Jishin reaching up to 400 thousand significant and valid
uses. Hashtag users also used #J_j_helpme approximately 150 thousand times and #Anpi a little
over 100 thousand times, just in the two days after the earthquake (“Twitter Once Again Proves
Its Worth in Japan Earthquake Aftermath”). The Japanese utilized social media and hashtags to
enhance the initial recovery process from the natural disaster.
The social media spread, however, did not stop in Japan. Another chart on Topsy
documented that, globally, twitter users mentioned “Japan” almost 200 thousand times, and they
mentioned “earthquake” close to 160 thousand times in the two days following the disaster
(“Twitter Once Again Proves Its Worth in Japan Earthquake Aftermath”). To commemorate this
event, more hashtags, such as #PrayForJapan and #JapanQuake, appeared in posts from around
the world, assuring Japan that they were not alone (Liepmann). Not only did hashtags like these
ones enhance the recovery process in Japan, they also enhanced global awareness of the disaster.
Because social media is such a global entity, hashtags have become news networks for
people. The speed social media and hashtags allow is shocking and often faster than professional
news stations. It is becoming more and more common for news to break on Twitter and then to
spread on Twitter. In fact, most people would give the response that they learned about the Japan
earthquake on social media rather than on the five o’clock news, and this idea goes for other
events as well, such as the Boston Marathon bombing or the 2012 Colorado wildfires. Hashtags
allow for easy searching of posts about events, and they clue people in to the latest information
on the event.
Hashtags enlighten users of the latest information in social movements as well. One of
the latest social movement hashtags to hit social media is #HeForShe. Emma Watson’s campaign
for feminism is directed toward involving both men and women to bring about gender equality.
4. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
The HeForShe campaign website describes the cause as “a solidarity movement for gender
equality that brings together one half of humanity in support of the other half of humanity, for
the benefit of all” (heforshe.org). Watson delivered a speech to the United Nations on September
20, 2014 to launch the campaign, and within hours after the video of the speech was posted,
social media was buzzing with #HeForShe. Watson promoted the hashtag from the beginning by
encouraging supporters to use #HeForShe and by using the hashtag herself. She tweeted on
September 21, “Wonderful men out there. I’m launching a campaign – #heforshe. Support the
women in ur lives and sign up here now! <3 heforshe.org” (Twitter). That tweet alone has
received over 29 thousand retweets and more than 37 thousand favorites. Not only has the
hashtag itself been used over 80 thousand times (just in the hours following the campaign’s
launching), but celebrities have also embraced the cause and posted #HeForShe on social media
(Molloy). (Chris Colfer, Russell Crowe and Harry Styles are just a few of these influential men
using the hashtag [Nudd].) #HeForShe delivered their campaign with the intention of using a
hashtag to spread the idea, which has proved to be a successful technique.
It is becoming clearer that social media and hashtags are the one of the most, if not the
most, influential and successful technique that a movement can use to enlighten the people of the
world about its cause. #HeForShe is a brilliant example of that. The hashtag links together
people’s stories and ideas about the HeForShe campaign. The hashtag is attention getting and
easy to remember. The hashtag is searchable. The hashtag relates to the name of the movement;
in fact, in HeForShe’s case, it is the name of the movement. Hashtags like #HeForShe help social
media spread news about social movements faster and more directly than any technique ever
used before.
5. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
Hashtags are powerful influences when it comes to social movements, worldwide events,
and politics. Plenty of examples exist of hashtags impacting politics and government, global
happenings, and public causes. These examples demonstrate that hashtags are not all simply
random words or phrases placed directly behind a pound symbol. While some hashtags are
menial and unhelpful, impactful hashtags do exist, and these hashtags are changing the world –
one social media post at a time.
6. Jaime Hillegonds
“Tools of the Trade” Essay
2 October 2014
Works Cited
Doctor, Vanessa. "#Debate: Obama Finally Fires Back at Romney." Hashtags.org. N.p., 17 Oct.
2012. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
"Essentials Government & Politics: The Impact of Tweeting with Photos, Videos, Hashtags and
Links." Government & Politics: The Impact of Tweeting with Photos, Videos, Hashtags
and Links. Twitter Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
Girard, Mike. "Social Media Hashtags Become a Political Weapon of Choice." Salesforce
Marketing Cloud. N.p., 22 May 2012. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
Goldman, Julianna. "Obama Winning Social Media, If #Hashtagwars Really
Matter."Bloomberg.com. Bloomberg, 22 Oct. 2012. Web. 27 Sept. 2014.
HeForShe. UN Women, n.d. Web. 1 Oct. 2014.
Liepmann, Erica. "Twitter, Facebook Become Vital During Japan Earthquake." The Huffington
Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 11 Mar. 2011. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
Molloy, Mark. "Emma Watson’s #HeForShe Campaign Inspires Men to Fight for Gender
Equality." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 24 Sept. 2014. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
Nudd, Tim. "Harry Styles, Russell Crowe & More Support Emma Watson with #HeForShe
Selfies." PEOPLE.com. Time Inc., 26 Sept. 2014. Web. 28 Sept. 2014.
"Popular Twitter #Hashtags for #Politics." Independent Concerns. Liberty Blog, n.d. Web. 27
Sept. 2014.
Schaffer, Neil. "5 Important Things Japan Taught the World about Twitter in 2011."Business
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