Social media played a crucial role in mobilizing people to participate in mass protests by sharing viral images of police repression.
Mass protests in the 2010s lacked clear leadership and structure, leading to unintended leaders and distorted narratives influenced by social media and the media at large.
The usage of social media in mass protests revealed its susceptibility to co-optation by autocrats and reactionary forces, challenging the notion of social media as inherently democratic.
Deep dives
Protests Misunderstood by Media
The mass protests and uprisings in the 2010s were often misunderstood or misrepresented by the media. The initial excitement around social media's role in these protests led to an oversimplified narrative that overshadowed the complex realities of these movements.
Social Media's Role in Scaling Up Protests
Social media played a significant role in scaling up the size of protests, often leading to greater pressure on existing elites and creating a destabilizing force. Viral images of police repression, which became more visible through social media, played a crucial role in mobilizing people to take to the streets.
Challenges of Coherence and Power Vacuum
One of the challenges faced by mass protests was maintaining coherence and taking advantage of opportunities in power vacuums. As protests grew in size and consisted of individuals with different ideas, it became difficult to form a unified leadership or demands. The media's narrative shaping and the interference of external forces further complicated the outcomes of these movements.
The Tyranny of Structurelessness in Mass Protests
Mass protests in the 2010s often lacked clear leadership and structure, leading to the emergence of unintended and sometimes undemocratic leaders. Social media played a significant role in shaping these movements, as individuals who went viral on platforms like Twitter and Facebook ended up being seen as representatives of the entire movement, even if they had no actual connection to the grassroots organizers. In some cases, the media also played a role in imposing narratives on these movements, either aligning with their goals or distorting their message. The idea of horizontal structures and decentralization became popular in these protests, but it was often misunderstood and led to unintended consequences.
The Shifting Power Dynamics of Social Media
Social media, initially seen as a tool for organizing and promoting democracy, witnessed a shift in its usage by both Western governments and states facing mass protests. Autocrats and reactionary forces quickly adapted to and co-opted these platforms to serve their own interests, challenging the narrative of social media as inherently democratic. Power dynamics in mass protests and online spaces are complex and context-dependent, with the effectiveness of tactics and tools depending on who uses them and for what purpose. The decade also showed that decentralization does not automatically lead to democratic change, as seen in cases like Libya, where it resulted in warlords and civil war. The lessons learned highlight the need for critical thinking and a deeper understanding of power structures rather than putting blind faith in particular ideological shapes or technologies.
Paris Marx is joined by Vincent Bevins to discuss the mass protests of the 2010s, the role that social and traditional media played in them, and why the horizontalism of those movements ultimately didn’t work.
Vincent Bevins is a longtime foreign correspondent who has worked for the Washington Post, Financial Times, and LA Times. He’s the author of The Jakarta Method and If We Burn: The Mass Protest Decade and the Missing Revolution.
Tech Won’t Save Us offers a critical perspective on tech, its worldview, and wider society with the goal of inspiring people to demand better tech and a better world. Support the show on Patreon.
The podcast is made in partnership with The Nation and produced by Eric Wickham. Transcripts are by Brigitte Pawliw-Fry.
