Work

Communicating feminist politics? The double-edged sword of using social media in a feminist organisation

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: Media coverage of violence against women and girls (VAWG) has increased in recent years, due to high-profile investigations such as the 2012 Jimmy Savile case in the UK, and in response to the #MeToo movement in the USA. Feminist organisations are likely to be asked for comment by the media as a result, but journalistic interest in case details rather than systemic causes of VAWG means that political messages focused on ending VAWG remain difficult to communicate. In contrast, social media is frequently celebrated as a channel through which the politics of feminist organisations can be promoted more directly, bypassing mainstream media agendas. In this article, we present the results of participatory research that explored the tensions inherent in social media use by one UK feminist organisation, Rape Crisis England & Wales (RCEW). The findings challenge the utopian view of social media as a panacea for news media shortcomings. Rather than being unequivocally positive, integrating social media into a feminist organisation’s communication work is a double-edged sword, bringing significant challenges that users must negotiate on a daily basis.

Source: Feminist Media Studies

DOI: 10.1080/14680777.2019.1599036

Authors: Lee Edwards, Fiona Philip, Ysabel Gerrard

Institutions: London School of Economics and Political Science, University of Sheffield

Language: English

Topic: Gender, Feminism, and Media

Subfield: Gender Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Gender equality, Reduced inequalities, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: green

Funder: University of Leeds