New forms of Activism in a Network Society MJM17 Seminar Presentation By Michelle O’Brien Student #10843673

1. New forms of Activism
in a Network Society
MJM17 Seminar Presentation
Michelle O’Brien
Student #10843673

2. Presentation Outline
1. Definitions of key terms
2. The Internet as a tool for mobilisation
3. OWS social media use
4. Impact of ICTs in offline participation (link
between virtual & physical)
5. The Network Society as context for modern
protest movements
6. Conclusion
7. Forum questions
2

3. The Internet as a tool for
mobilisation
OWS Manifesto:
“Occupy Wall Street is a leaderless people powered movement
for democracy that began in America on September 17 with
an encampment in the financial district of New York City.
Inspired by the Egyptian Tahrir Square uprising and the
Spanish acampadas, we vow to end the monied corruption of
our democracy!”
Adbusters (http://www.adbusters.org, 2011)
3

4. The OWS movement began with a single tweet from Canadian
activist group Adbusters on 4 July 2011.
Source: http://twitter.com/#!/Adbusters/status/88013043438600192, 2011
4

5. The campaign was followed up a few weeks later with the Charging Bull campaign
which quickly went viral on the Internet. The image is a public sculpture of a bull near
Wall Street, NYC. Possible interpretation is capitalist dynamism of a bull being
controlled by Zen-like stillness of a ballerina (Schwartz, 2011). Protesters are
emerging from a cloud of tear gas in the background and the text reads “What is our
one demand? #Occupy Wall Street, September 17th, Bring tent”.
Source: Adbusters, http://www.adbusters.org/campaigns/occupywallstreet, 2011
5

6. Memes & culture jamming
Many images and symbols have arisen in the political vocabulary
of the OWS movement, going viral online as memes. An
internet meme is a concept, in forms such as a hyperlink,
video, image, hashtag or catchphrase, which spreads quickly
via the Internet (Knobel & Lankshear, 2007).
The use of culture jamming is also an important tools of activism
in a Network Society, spreading “ideas by playfully subverting
the familiar ideas captured by popular cultural and
commercial memes” (Bennett, 2003:28). New forms of
activism often use culture jamming to stage subversion on the
Internet and through media channels, for example through
virtual ‘sit-in’, hacking, blocking access to official sites and
disrupting official information flow (Van Aelst & Walgrave,
2002).
6

7. Example of OWS meme: Mister President, We HOPE
You’re On Our Side
Source: http://obeygiant.com/headlines/occupy-hope, 2011
7

8. Example of OWS meme: #OWS
Source: http://www.occupytogether.org/downloadable-posters/, 2011 8

9. Example of OWS meme: Opening animation for a special
Occupy Wall Street screening, curated by Zero Film Festival
NYC
Source: http:// www.vimeo.com/32169063, 2011
9

10. Example of OWS meme: This Person Supports the Occupy Movement
Source: http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt?sk=photos, 2011 10

11. Example of OWS meme: Occupy Canberra Poster
Source: http://occupycanberra.wordpress.com/ , 2011 11

12. The Internet as a tool for mobilisation
OWS uses the Internet as a mobilisation tool to:
• Produce frames to signify collective identity and field of action
– E.g. publishing a manifesto, principles, policies and collective statements
• Build networks
– E.g. creation of online ‘groups’ coordinating various aspects of the movements
including think tanks, alternate banking, accountability, legal, volunteer
services and media
• Provide access to resources
– E.g. online toolkits and how to guides such as organising a rally to designing an
OWS poster
• Physically manifest emerging political ideals
– E.g. Coordinating rallies, marches, stand-ins and other physical protest actions
and events
Examples of various OWS websites can be seen in the following slides.
NYGA (http://www.nycga.net/, 2011), Juris (2005), Moussa (2011)
12

13. New York City General Assembly Website
Source: http://www.nycga.net/, 2011
13

14. Occupy Wall Street Website Homepage
Source: http://www.occupywallst.org/ , 2011
14

15. Occupy Together Website Homepage
Source: http://www.occupytogether.org/, 2011
15

16. The Internet as a tool for mobilisation
• These websites are not only political campaign
websites, but are also tools for OWS's internal
activities, mostly organised around independent
working groups within the movement.
• Underlying the operations of these online hubs is a
horizontal structure that encourages anyone to
participate in the movement.
• This online presence represents more than the
facilitation of the movement; it can be argued that it
has also inspired the design and structure of the
movement.
Rosen (2011)
16

17. The Internet as a tool for mobilisation
The voice of the Occupy movement online, as quoted from the Declaration
posted across many of their unofficial websites, has a revolutionary
rhetoric. An example can be seen here:
“To the people of the world, We, the New York City General Assembly
occupying Wall Street in Liberty Square, urge you to assert your power ...
To all communities that take action and form groups in the spirit of direct
democracy, we offer support, documentation, and all of the resources at
our disposal. Join us and make your voices heard!”
NYCGA (http://nycga.net, 2011)
Through this choice of language, it can be claimed the movement is:
• focussing on joint/collective action
• projecting general ‘change’-oriented goals and claims
• promoting non-institutional collective action
• aiming to attract supporters not limited to location or specific political
stance
Moussa, 2011
17

18. Example of NYGA rhetoric: Declaration of the Occupation
of New York City Info Graphic
Source: http://www.nycga.net/resources/declaration/, 2011 18

19. OWS Social Media Use
From early on in the movement, OWS has chosen not to use social media
channels as their official communications channels, but instead to rely
on tools including:
• WordPress
• other open-source platforms
Rosen (2011)
Why?
“The movement is so heavily based around the check and balance of
corporate power. Relying on sites such as Facebook, they felt, placed
them too much under someone else's control... We decided that low-
tech communication methods would be best… If we’d used a mass text
message, or Twitter, it would have been easy for the police to track
down who was doing this.”
OWS organiser Jake DeGroot, as quoted by Rosen, 2011
Despite this decision, many unofficial OWS social media profiles have
proliferated. Examples can be seen in the following slides.
19

20. Occupy Wall Street Twitter Profile
Source: http://www.twitter.com/occupywallst, 2011 20

21. Occupy Wall St. Facebook Page
Source: http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt, 2011 21

22. We Are the 99% Tumblr
Source: http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com/, 2011
22

23. OWS Social Media Use
The OWS social media presence is largely decentralised, for example there are
multiple Facebook pages and blogs dedicated to the movement rather than
single official profiles. The use of Twitter hashtags in the OWS movement is an
example of this decentralisation:
#ows #occupy #occupytogether #occupywallst
#occupywallstreet #sep17 #anonymous
#globalrevolution #occupywallstnyc
Twitter (http://www.twitter.com, 2011)
This decentralisaton of hashtags is a possible reason why the OWS movement is not
trending as highly on Twitter as organisers want. This has lead to conspiracy
stories that Twitter is censoring the movement, a theory Twitter claims are
incorrect (Social Media Collective, http://socialmediacollective.org, 2011).
23

24. This graph shows the movements of the #occupy hashtag on Twitter on October 13, 2011, the
day the owners of Zuccotti park (OWS main location), requested that NYPD clear the park. The
graph represents over 6000 tweets posted by almost 5000 Twitter users, spreading information
about the “impeding standoff” between OWS protesters and NYPD. The bigger the cluster, the
more important the source in terms of Retweets and mentions by Twitter users.
Source: Social Flow (http://blog.socialflow.com/, 2011)
24

25. This report on the use of the #occupy hashtag in Twitter over the past three
months shows peaks on Oct 10, 2011, the day NYC Mayor Bloomberg
suggested that he did not anticipate the removal of demonstrators from
Zuccotti Park (OWS main location) and Nov 14, 2011, the day NYPD raided
and cleared the camp.
Sources: Occupy Wall Street Website, (http://www.occupywallstreet.org, 2011)
Trendistic (http://trendistic.indextank.com/occupy/_90-days, 2011)
25

26. OWS Social Media Use
Use of social media via mobile technologies is also a valuable
communication tool for protest movements such as OWS, providing
organisers with tools such as wireless internet and reception/coverage
to:
• coordinate movements of groups
• communicate across diverse protest locations
• easily record and disseminate information and documentation of
events (e.g. police brutality)
Garrett (2006)
However, heavy reliance by protest movements on ICTs can be
problematic due to the fact that government and corporations often
have control over these networks. For example, if activists depend on
cell phones to coordinate action and these actions become threatening
to the interests of those with power, disrupting or monitoring cell
phone service may demobilise protest efforts. An example of this was
seen after the UK riots of 2011 when Blackberry assisted police in an
investigation into communications between rioters sent through their
network.
Rosen (2011), Halliday (2011) 26

27. Example of the importance of the dissemination of information through social
media in the movement: Occupy Together Poster - Sorry, The Revolution Will Not
Be Televised Source: Occupy Together Website (http://www.occupytogether.org, 2011)
27

28. Example of the OWS live stream, not seen of mainstream media channels:
Global Revolution Livestream Website
Source: Global Revolution website (http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution, 2011)
28

29. Impact of ICTs in offline participation
(link between virtual & physical)
There is an intrinsic link between the virtual and physical
elements of the OWS movement
– E.g. physical protests are often organised through virtual
communications channls
The distinction between online and offline community is
often exaggerated
– Theorists such as Gladwell (2010) argue digital activism is in no
way linked with physical participation
Online networks is not a place apart but rather a crucial
element of the protest movement. Online networks
complement and strengthen offline networks, and vice
versa, through the integration of technology into
communication channels.
Spyridakis et al (2009), Juris (2005)
29

30. Example of offline OWS protest projects: Image from
Occupy George Website
Source: Occupy George website (http://www.occupygeorge.com/, 2011)
30

31. Example of mass offline participation: Screenshot of CCN
News Coverage of Physical Occupy Protests - Nov 17, 2011
Source: New Economies Tumblr (http://neweconomies.tumblr.com/, 2011) 31

32. Impact of ICTs in offline participation
Protest movements such as OWS also actively
encourage online contributors to extend their
participation to a physical level.
For example the slogan of the email discussion list
provider Riseup is “Get off the Internet. We’ll see
you in the streets.”
Rise Up (http://www.riseup.net, 2011)
32

33. Example of encouragement for protesters to move offline: ‚Like‘
Is Not Action
Source: Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt?sk=photos, 2011) 33

34. Impact of ICTs in offline participation
The link between the virtual and the physical in modern
protest movements usually occurs in the following
progression:
Step 1: Access to technology
Step 2: Exposure to online network
Step 3: Online participation
Step 4: Offline participation
Juris (2005)
However, even when activists are participating in offline
activities, “they often move back and forth between
online and offline political activity, using the internet as
the protest movements technological architecture” Juris
(2005:4).
34

35. The Network Society as context for
modern protest movements
The Network Society provides a conducive environment for
organising modern protest movements.
One reason is that protest movements in a Network Society boast a
hacker ethic based on the values of “free information, decentralized
coordination, collaborative learning, peer recognition, and social
service” Juris (2004:4). Like computer hackers, activist-hackers
share and circulate information through communications networks
using cultural codes and symbols.
OWS is not the first protest movement that has used the
framework of the Network Society for mobilisation. In the recent
2011 Arab Spring protests, Islamic movements benefited greatly
from the use of ICTs, given strict government control and media
censorship.
Juris (2004), Moussa (2011)
35

36. The Network Society as context for
modern protest movements
The Network Society not only provides a framework for
modern protest movements such as OWS but also
represents a model for “creating alternative forms of
social, political, and economic organisation” Juris
(2005:4). This innovation is possible largely through the
technology at the movement’s disposal:
“Whereas before, hierarchy would have been assumed in a
national happening like Occupy, protesters could look to
other models of organizing work. They could look to open
source projects or, more simply, the insta-networks that
spring up around metastatic information. Networked
organization is a useful reality as well as a sort of
psychological support structure.” Rosen (2011)
36

37. Conclusion
It can be claimed that power in the Networked Society is shifting away
from traditional institutions such as the state, capitalist forms and
the mainstream media, towards more disseminated groups,
technologies and communications tools.
“Power is no longer concentrated in institutions, organisations or
symbolic controllers. It is diffused in global networks of wealth,
power, information and images” Castells, (2007: 167).
This can be seen in the growing power of ICTs as an important tool for
new forms of activism. For example on June 16, 2011, in the height
of the Arab Spring Revolution, the US government requested that
Twitter postpone updates to the service by “highlight*ing] to them
that this was an important form of communication” in both external
information exchange as well as internal organisation of the
movement.
Gaffney (2011:1)
37

38. Conclusion
Thus, the Network Society provides a conducive breeding ground for
the rise of modern protest movements. These new forms of
activism are intrinsically linked to the growing power of technology
in our society.
To conclude, a quote from a blogger who views OWS as the birth of a
new social, ethical and political form, born of a Network Society:
“Born as a phenomena of and by the Internet and social media,
chronicled and measured based upon Web-derived metrics and
artefacts, I believe we are witnessing the birth and emergence of a
new social, ethical and political form in its earliest nascent stage. It
will continue to grow, and begin to develop ways of expressing and
asserting itself, as an aggregated expression of the will of all those
who by participating are its de facto contributors and constituents,
which over time shall comprise a global 99%”.
Breitbart (http://thewhyaxis.info/occupy/, 2011)
38

39. Forum Questions
Please select two questions to answer in the Student Central Forum.
1. How have ICTs, in particular the Internet, changed the way you
personally engage with social and political issues?
2. When people participate in activism via social media, do you believe
they are doing anything meaningful? Is the line as straightforward as
Internet activism and physical activism?
3. Select an image from the presentation and examine how its design
and message fits within the framework of a Network Society.
4. Mattelaart (2003: 23) states that “each new generation revives the
‘redemptive discourse’ of liberating effects of new communication
technology, only to be disappointed when old hierarchies of power
prove to persist”. This quote shows the paradox between the
liberation through ICTs and the over-arching corporate and
government control of these technologies. Does this sentiment
resonates within OWS movement?
5. Are modern protest movements such as OWS an expression of today’s
Network Society? In what ways do you think they are related?
39

40. Bibliography
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http://www.adbusters.org/
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http://www9.georgetown.edu/faculty/irvinem/theory/Castells-NetworkSociety.pdf
Fairey, S. (2011) *Image+. Mister President, We HOPE You’re On Our Side, Obey Giant, November
21, 2011. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 22, 2011)
http://obeygiant.com/headlines/occupy-hope
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41. Bibliography
Garrett, R. (2006). Protest in an Information Society: A Review of Literature on Social Movements and
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http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution
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42. Bibliography
Knobel, M., & Lankshear, C. (2007). Online memes, affinities, and cultural production. In M. Knobel & C.
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Justice and Charity. Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture, 8(2), 63 – 92.
New York City General Assembly (2011) [Website]. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011)
http://www.nycga.net/
Occupy George (2011) [Website]. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 22, 2011)
http://www.occupygeorge.com/
Occupy Together (2011) [Website]. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011)
http://www.occupytogether.org/ Occupy Wall Street (2011) [Website]. Retrieved from URL
(accessed November 15, 2011)
http://www.occupywallst.org/
Occupy Wall St. (2011) [Website]. Occupy Wall St. Facebook profile, Facebook. Retrieved from URL
(accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt
Occupy Wall Street (2011) [Website]. Occupy Wall Street Twitter Profile, Twitter. Retrieved from URL
(accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.twitter.com/occupywallst
Rise Up (2011) [Website]. Rise Up. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 22, 2011) http://riseup.net
42

43. Bibliography
Rosen, R. (2011). How Do You Code a Movement? The Atlantic, 18 November 2011. Retrieved from URL
(accessed 22 November 2011)
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44. Images / Video
Adbusters (2011) [Image]. Charging Bull Poster, Adbusters. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15,
2011) http://www.adbusters.org/campaigns/occupywallstreet
Adbusters (2011) [Image]. First Occupy Tweet, Twitter, July 5, 2011. Retrieved from URL (accessed
November 22, 2011) http://twitter.com/#!/Adbusters/status/88013043438600192
Global Revolution Livestream Website (2011) [Image]. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15,
2011) http://www.livestream.com/globalrevolution
McMillian & Furlow (2011) [Image]. #OWS Poster, Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011)
http://www.occupytogether.org/downloadable-posters/
MK12 ZeroFilm NYC Open (2011) [Video]. Opening animation for Zero Film Festival in NYC, Vimeo,
November 18, 2011. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 22, 2011)
http://www.vimeo.com/32169063
New Economies (2011) [Image]. CNN News Coverage TV Screengrab, Tumblr, November 17, 2011.
Retrieved from URL (accessed November 22, 2011) http://neweconomies.tumblr.com/
New York City General Assembly (2011) [Image]. Declaration of the Occupation of New York City Info
Graphic, New York City General Assembly, October 19, 2011. Retrieved from URL (accessed
November 22, 2011) http://www.nycga.net/resources/declaration/
New York City General Assembly (2011) [Image]. Website Homepage, New York City General Assembly.
Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.nycga.net/
Occupy Canberra (2011) [Image]. A call to arms poster, Occupy Canberra. Retrieved from URL (accessed
November 22, 2011) http://occupycanberra.wordpress.com/
Occupy George (2011) [Image]. Dollar Bill Photograph #1, Occupy George. Retrieved from URL (accessed
November 22, 2011) http://www.occupygeorge.com/
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45. Images / Video
Occupy Together (2011) [Image]. Website Homepage, Occupy Together. Retrieved from URL (November
15, 2011) http://www.occupytogether.org/
Occupy Wall St. (2011) *Image+. “Like” Is Not Action, Facebook. Retrieved from URL (accessed November
15, 2011) http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt?sk=photos
Occupy Wall Street (2011) [Image]. This Person Supports the Occupy Movement, Facebook. Retrieved
from URL (accessed November 15, 2011)
http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt?sk=photos
Occupy Wall St. Facebook (2011) [Image]. Occupy Wall St. Facebook profile, Facebook. Retrieved from
URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.facebook.com/OccupyWallSt
Occupy Wall Street Twitter (2011) [Image]. Occupy Wall Street Twitter Profile, Twitter. Retrieved from
URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.twitter.com/occupywallst
Occupy Wall Street Website (2011) [Image]. Occupy Wall Street Website Homepage, Occupy Wall Street.
Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.occupywallst.org/
Samuel O. (2011) [Image]. Sorry, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised Poster, Occupy Together. Retrieved
from URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://www.occupytogether.org/downloadable-posters/
Social Flow (2011) [Image]. #OccupyWallStreet: origin and spread visualized, Social Flow, October 18,
2011. Retrieved from URL (accessed November 15, 2011) http://blog.socialflow.com/post/
7120244404/occupywallstreet-origin-and-spread-visualized
Trendistic (2011) [Image]. #occupy Tweet trending graph Aug 28 – Nov 22, 2011, Trendistic. Retrieved
from URL (accessed November 22, 2011) http://trendistic.indextank.com/occupy/_90-days
We Are the 99% (2011) [Image]. We Are the 99% Tumblr Homepage, Tumblr. Retrieved from URL (accessed
November 22, 2011) http://wearethe99percent.tumblr.com
45