How Language Influences Success When Using Social Media For Starting And Sharing Different Social Justice Movements

Social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, have allowed their users to stay connected with others more than ever before. Although, when it comes to social and political activism, these sites are the least effective method for change. The creation of these social media sites has made many people believe that, by spreading their “knowledge” and information to their followers and fellow networkers, they can easily solve an issue that has risen in society; however, Malcolm Gladwell, staff member of The New Yorker magazine, disagrees. In his essay, Gladwell opens with a description of the Greensboro sit-ins. He emphasizes how effectively members participating

Social Media is a form of communication in which a person shares information, personal ideas, and thoughts online. The foundation of social media began in 1997 when the first social media site Six Degrees was developed. Since 1997, social media has become an iconic name and has become part of this generation's conversation. There are over 100 million people using social media to gain access to the digital world, with over 20 social media sites including Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat, and Instagram (Milanovic 1). Roughly 80 percent of teens and 20 percent of adults use social media daily and almost half of the users were bullied or criticized for a single comment. Comments that include discrimination, sexism, or political beliefs can be retweeted to thousands in a matter of hours. “Accusations go viral, globally, within hours, and instead of having dozens of angry voices baying for your blood, you have tens of thousands” (Haley 1). Although social media has made it easier to communicate these sites, make it easier to be critical or prejudiced to others online instead of face-to-face.

In the article “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted” by Malcolm Gladwell, he argues that the use of social media to start a revolution doesn’t help the cause to be as big or impactful than it could be. He explains the connection between social media with “weak-ties” versus “strong-ties.” In relation with these “ties,” throughout the article Gladwell goes back and forth from discussing the successful approaches of the Civil Rights Movement and their strategies for their cause without the use of social media, to how ineffective other various organizations in the past and present turned to social media to try their cause.

In his article “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted”, New Yorker writer Malcolm Gladwell complains that the casual, low-stakes activism that takes place on social media will never make a difference in the real world, and that sharing political posts online does not have nearly as powerful an effect as physical, real-life activism. He claims that the Internet allows us to feel disconnected from the issue at hand, and unless people feel true, personal outrage about something, and are willing to make concrete sacrifices, big-picture change is a hopeless pursuit. While I find myself primarily agreeing with Gladwell, I believe he doesn’t give social media enough credit for all that it can do for the world of activism when used effectively.

Malcolm Gladwell’s article "Small Change: Why the Revolution Will not be Tweeted" raises a significant question about the prospective contribution of web-based social networking to the advent of progressive social movement and change. Gladwell’s bold declaration that "the revolution will not be tweeted" is reflective of his view that social media has no useful application in serious activism. Contrasting various elements of the “high-stakes” lunch-counter protests in Greensboro, North Carolina in the 1960’s with the “low-stakes” activism achieved through social media, Gladwell concludes that effective social movements powerful enough to impose change on longstanding societal forces require both “strong ties” among participants and the

Language and communication between different cultures is complex; the future holds many technological promises that will make these complexities easier to bear. This dialect decline can be credited to the industrialization of communication which exploits the human interest of entertainment, which in turn, expands and simplifies human communication. Billions of people of all walks of life have assimilated to the language of modern technology and billions more are left in the dusk. “Media exposure can spread new vocabulary and give people in different regions an understanding of the “standard American.” (PBS) The internet has allowed people to communicate farther than ever before, share knowledge at light speed pace. We feel that we do not have time to type “hey that was very funny” instead we type “LOL” we have simplified terms in speech and have become accustomed to the internet world: speed equals success. Society’s entrepreneurs and astute minds are constantly

The article “Small Change” was published in The New Yorker by Malcolm Gladwell on October 4, 2010-- “the article was aimed to convince the general population that social media is not as dangerous to the status quo as many would be lead to believe” (McMillan). Gladwell is effective in explaining why social media is not adequate enough in achieving social or political change; however this statement is incorrect. Through the examples he provides from present day and the Civil Rights Movement, Gladwell shows the reader the technique used in the past was more effective than what is used today, “he (Gladwell) discusses how social media establishes a large network based upon consensus instead of a hierarchy”(McMillan). Although without a hierarchy,

During the 2011 Egypt uprising protesters gained support through social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to help end poverty and unemployment in which they were experiencing at the time. This major flow of support from across the world helped strengthen the protesters cause and led to an eventual victory in Egypt (Brym 2014).

As part of daily life, we communicate and connect ourselves with certain communities. School, jobs, families, sports, extracurricular activities, and many other communities are just a few we come into contact with. Although these may seem to appear the same, there are specific types of communities such as a discourse community. A discourse community is a group of people involved in and communicating about a particular topic, issue, or in a particular field (Webcourses, N.d, Website) that has a share a common set of goals and attempt to achieve these goals (Swales, 1990). According to researcher and educator, John Swales, there are six characteristics that define whether or not a community is considered a discourse community. Following the criteria Swales states is necessary to be a discourse community, I did an in depth research on the American Sign Language community. Through my study, I was able to meet all six characteristics.

A reoccurring issue that has been detrimental in today’s society is racism. Today, many people have used social media to speak out against this troublesome topic. The article “Black Tweets Matter” tries to explain how social media has been used in the fight against racism. The text talks about multiple hashtags that have been used on social media to bring these racist events to light. “Black Tweets Matter” is a very short article that can be at times hard to read. However, Jenna Worthin was ineffective in parts of “Black Tweets Matter” by her unprofessional word choice, misused quotes, and inability to stay on topic.

How often do we use social media? Teenagers spend at least nine hours a day on social networking sites. That’s thirty percent of all time spent online dedicated to social media. These numbers are constantly increasing every day. Many of the tweets and posts that we see on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter use arguments and we don’t even realize it. All of these arguments use ethos, pathos, and logos to make a point. Let’s examine how these three concepts are used on social media.

We use technology as the number one means of communication, and social media has made communicating with each other even easier. We have the ability to

The almost omnipresent Internet transforms our lives, connecting us to family, friends, and the world in ways inconceivable only a few years ago. Through social media, we actively participate in creating, editing, and consuming a never-ending stream of data. Private corporations and protagonists of political or social change all vie to reach and engage highly targeted

According to Dictionary.reference.com, activism is the policy or action of using campaigning to bring about political or social change. A huge campaign that is well known across the world, the Civil Rights Movement, was brought about by Martin Luther King, Jr. King risked his life everyday to ensure justice and equality for the African American race. “Small Change” by Malcolm Gladwell gives insight on how activism is more effective than social media, especially from one scenario at the Woolworth’s lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina. Gladwell points out his strong belief of what activism can do for a society rather

Some, including Malcolm Gladwell, a famous Canadian journalist, uphold a negative view that social media is not capable to make real social activisms. In the article, Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted, Gladwell states, “the platforms of social media are built around weak ties,” (Gladwell 406) whereas high-risk activisms in the past concern more of the strong ties. In other words, Malcolm believes that closed relationships are critically required for the activisms while social media only provides distant connections among acquaintances. Therefore, weak ties offered by social media, “seldom lead to high-risk activism”