Social Media Activism: Evaluating Its Effectiveness - Essay Sample

Introduction

In the current era that is characterized by significant innovations and technological advancements, social media has become a central tool for activism. As a result, it is utilized to champion various ideas based on the goals and objectives of a social or political movement. Nonetheless, there has been a continued critique of the effectiveness of social media, especially given that it promotes weak ties. In a bid to evaluate the use of social media in political and social activism, the discussion in this paper will use the Social Change article by Malcolm Gladwell to determine what makes a movement successful using social media. Examples will be derived from the article, analyzing the role of strong and weak ties in rendering success or failure of movements. For this discussion, the Feminist Movement will be used for the analysis of strong and weak ties.

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Strong Ties

Gladwell highlights that strong ties are the most effective in steering the agendas in both social and political movements. The most significant example is the Feminist Movement that has been active for more than a century, been characterized by its different waves. Ultimately, the regular meetings and recruitment into the various waves of the movement throughout the United States improved the strong connections that were present in the movement. One of the major benefits of a strong tie is the hierarchical organization that it provides. In turn, power is concentrated among the leaders and selected individuals in the management. As such, secure connections ensure that existing power structures are reinforced. With a defined organizational structure, it becomes easier to manage the strategy as well as the duties of particular individuals within the movement. In the Feminist Movement, there has been a number of popular leaders throughout its waves, including Elizabeth Cady, Lucretia Coffin, and Charlotte Woodward. In turn, the existence of strong ties ensured that the movement was successful.

Additionally, strong ties are essential in the formation of any social or political movement. The ties are established and enhanced through regular meetings between individuals, especially those who share the same ideologies. More so, the movement activists were actively engaged in training sessions and programs that prepared them on what to anticipate during protests, as well as developing some of their objectives and goals. Given that movements are categorized as high-risk activism, the participation of different individuals necessitates the development of stronger ties (Gladwell). In the feminist movement, the participation of many individuals acts as a driving force to the championing of their ideas. The existence of the ties ensured that the movement was characterized by proper planning, leading to success.

Weak Ties

On the other hand, social media is reported to promote weak ties. Some of the significant avenues of social media that are associated with the formation of movements include twitter and facebook. Gladwell points out that weak ties are crucial in connecting with a large group of people. The majority of individuals help in addressing low-stakes social participation. As such, they can be utilized while sharing information regarding a particular social or political movement. More so, social media allows people to connect and provide diverse opinions. People around the globe have the opportunity to give their views concerning an agenda being steered by a particular movement, although they never meet in person. As such, the weak ties help in the generation of different strategies, all of which influence the achievement of the objectives of a social movement.

The weak ties that are provided by social media tend to be less effective as compared to strong relationships. One of the reasons for being less effectiveness is due to the change of structure adopted. Although there might be some of the leaders of a movement who are active participants in social media, the structure and authority are not well defined (Gladwell). As a result, decisions are based on a consensus, and the ties that bide individuals together are usually loose. Additionally, it is difficult to maintain the discipline of a movement, as the participants are widely distributed, and there is no convenient way of controlling the opinions. The networks are also vulnerable to other individuals who have a different agenda contrary to the objectives of a movement. According to Gladwell, the best relations in pioneering a movement require to facilitate the interacting of individuals, basically on a one on one basis.

Effectiveness of Both Strong and Weak Ties

Both strong and weak ties are required to realize the success of a movement. More so, weak links can morph into strong ones. Such requires time and people working together to fight a common enemy or champion for a common agenda. For instance, some weak social ties influenced the success of the feminist movement. The weak links originate from its popularity and continued growth of its support. As such, individuals felt motivated to join the course of the movement regardless of not knowing the leaders in person. Indeed, this was initiated by weak ties that later developed to help meet the objectives of the movement. In as much as the weak ties do not support high-risk activism, they have played a role in the realization of active participation.

Additionally, the coexistence of both strong and weak ties serves different functions within a social or political movement. The diversity of using both tools is hence, crucial for the overall success of movements. Social media ties tend to network and mobilize individuals by informing about a particular objective. Once individuals are aware of the purposes of a movement, they are inclined to give their opinion as well as decide whether they want to participate in it. More so, it is an effective way of ensuring that people join a particular course. The use of social media is also attributed to recruiting people based on the aspect of sharing information. In contrast, weak ties might not be as effective as expected, especially when there is no consensus. Participants who are connected through the internet also lack the experience of what might be needed in steering the objectives of a movement.

Conclusion

In summation, the article by Malcolm Gladwell presents diverse aspects of what leads to the success of a movement. Strong ties are highly advocated for, especially if they are dealing with a high-risk issue. Through strong ties, a movement can utilize well-defined structures and hierarchies, ensuring that there is discipline and members of the movement are in line. On the other hand, weak ties tend to be less successful. Nonetheless, they are useful in disseminating information and mobilizing individuals towards a given course. Unlike strong ties, weak links lead to a wide range of opinions, some of which may influence participation negatively. Ultimately, the use of both weak and strong ties guarantees higher success rates for movements. It is primarily based on the reason that each of the ties serves a different function. Indeed, future analysis and research should focus on the success that is achieved by the utilization of both ties.

Works Cited

Gladwell, Malcolm. "Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted.". The New Yorker, 2010, Accessed 21 Nov 2019.