Citizens of the World

In Donatella Della Ratta’s chapter “Syria’s image-makers: Daesh militants and non-violent activists” from her book “Shooting a Revolution” she outlines the various media tactics used by Daesh and their counterparts. Daesh uses both violent and peaceful media tactics. The violent images are shown to create a spectacle, make a statement to the west, but also…

In a world where smartphones become normality, it is not surprising to see a clear shift in video reporting. The increased normalization of smartphones has made it so that anyone can record an event, a protest or any other situation they would like to report and upload it on social media to raise awareness. This…

Donatella Della Ratta’s “Shooting a Revolution: Visual Media and Warfare in Syria” shows the importance of political economy in the case of the Arab Spring. This shows that even in grassroots revolutions, money and power play a key factor. However, it is not always simple to understand the political economy behind an organization or movement…

Social media’s role in society appears often superfluous as we primarily rely on social media to share images of ourselves, of our trips or other quite superficial things that we enjoy. However, social media also has a more important role in society, enabling organization and mobilization for social movements. This has become particularly evident during…

In a world where digital technologies are so commonly used, it’s hard to truly understand their power. We often use technology to keep in contact with our friends and family, to research information, to store our data and so much more. Technology has simplified many aspects of our lives and it is more commonly seen…

In the book The Net Delusion : The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, specifically in chapter six: Why the KGB wants you to join Facebook, Evgeny Morozov discusses how online activism has two very different sides. On one hand, there is the more positive view that believes that online activism is helpful in raising awareness…

According to Sarah Banet and Roopali Mukherejee activism has been overtaken by neoliberalism. The overtake is defined  as Commodity Activism. This concept is a direct response to the basic idea on which neoliberalism is grounded, which is that through supply and demand the market will regulate itself. Therefore, as activism becomes a trend, the market…

In Jodi Dean’s book Democracy and other neoliberal fantasies: communicative capitalism & left politics, she discusses technology and the promises of Communicative Capitalism. Often, the debate surrounding the internet focuses on whether the internet is a good or bad public sphere. However, Jodi Dean does not focus on that question. She questions whose interests are…

When discussing social movements, the issue of weak and strong ties is crucial in understanding how the people within a movement are connected to one another. The internet has drastically changed the way in which people join, participate and learn about social movements. It has helped social movements reach people all over the world and…

Migration is a crucial topic in today’s political world. Even though migration has always been part of human experience and an essential element for the survival of the species, many today believe that it is not an inherent human right. Thankfully, the internet has allowed like-minded people to come together and create strength through the…