Media Monitoring in the Digital Age Symposium Thursday 23 & Friday 24 May 2013

1. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age SymposiumThursday 23 & Friday 24 May 2013 Examining Social Movements Messages Through Social Media Sites Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

2. Social Movements & Networking through Social Media Manuel Castells • (Networked Social Movements) offers connectivity, sharing and ‘feeling togetherness’ • (Autonomous Networks) “By engaging in the production of mass media messages, and by developing autonomous networks of horizontal communication, citizens of the Information Age become able to invent new programs for their lives with the materials of their suffering, fears, dreams and hopes” (Castells 2012, p.9) • Effective tools for: mobilising, organising, and deciding • Maintain communication channels among movement members Jan Van Dijk • (Information) Knowledge Networks: exchange of information • (Change) ICTs are threat to traditional totalitarian political systems that control flow of information • (Mobilisation) Powerful tools for mobilising • (Counter Information Campaigns) Used by totalitarian regimes to distribute their message • “Social Media in themselves will not cause democratic revolutions”. (Dijk 2012, p. 136) Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

3. Egypt: #25Jan We are all Khaled Said page on Facebook - Before the Revolution: Information about mistreatment of citizens in police stations; place for expressing outrage; calls for on ground activities -After the Start of Occupy Tahrir Square: the page along with other similar pages provided information, hourly updates from Tharir Square; encouraged followers to support the protesters 2) YouTube: Activist AsmaMamhouz call for protesting Criticising the brutality of the police; asking people to support her and her colleagues in their aim of expressing their demands; calling for political accountability of the regime Political message, mixed with emotions A clear aim: calling for a change, a revolution like Tunisia Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

4. Palestine Solidarity Movement in Ireland The work of the solidarity groups could be classified under two levels: 1) On-going campaigns that focus on - Raising awareness of the Palestinian cause (online websites, social media, on ground activities, stalls) - Organising visits to Palestine - Supporting the BDS (boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel) campaign - Lobbying media, politicians and decision makers in favour of the Palestinian people rights 2) Responding to major incidents occur in Palestine (such as recent attack on Gaza, Palestinian prisoners hunger strike) - Organising demonstrations and protests - Contacting local media and MPs - Galvanising online campaigns through social media sites Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

5. Study Case Question: Examining political discourse of the pro-Palestine in Ireland during the Palestinians prisoners in Israeli jails hunger strike between January and April 2013: Facebook pages content Nature of content (news, call of on-ground activity, lobbying decision makers) Similarities and differences of used terms, messages and content Number of posts related to on-ground /offline activities Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

6. Data Collection Data were extracted from the selected groups’ Facebook pages using Nvivo software Material posted only by the group admins were analysed , excluding other content posted by group members/pages fans Studied groups are local, national and university based groups, and non-active groups online were excluded form the analysis Content classified into categories: violation of prisoners rights (human rights); illegality of their imprisonment ; onground activities and call for solidarity activities; or sharing news about the hunger strikers Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

7. Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC):HQ in Dublin, has branches in most Irish cities; active in organising protests, cultural activities, lobbying and BDS campaigns. Around 4200 members on FB page Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

8. Act for Palestine: Dublin based groups active in organising constant protests in the city.4300 members on FB page. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

9. Sadaka - the Ireland Palestine Alliance: The Dublin based organisation focuses on lobbying politicians and NGOs; active in issuing fact finding reports. 1200 members on FB page. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

10. Cork Palestina Solidarity Campaign: the Cork branch of the IPSC. Around 1400 members on FB page. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

11. Limerick IPSC (Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign). Limerick branch of IPSC; has 425 members on FB page. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

12. Derry/Irish Friends of Palestine: Most active group in Northern Ireland; constantly updating it s Facebook page content with materials related to its on-ground activities. Around 6 thousand members on FB page. Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

13. Priorities Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

14. Prisoners News Using mainly Palestinian news sources Focusing on illegality of detaining political activists; right of prisoners to use hunger strike as a protesting method Shows the human side of the cause (suffering of political prisoners and hunger strikers) Reports from human rights institutions Publishing of local, regional and international solidarity activities Using images and cartoons Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

15. On-ground Activities -Groups use facebook as channel of communicating with their members Activates are organised on both local and national Protesters call for end of imprisoning Palestinian, supporting the hunger strikers rights, while ending the Israeli occupation is usually the main message Main events are usually organising demonstrations in major cities Link the cause with the Irish context (the Irish hungers strikers experience) Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

16. Conclusion Facebook used as news platforms to spread the news about the cause Used as tool for announcing past and future local activities Raising awareness by focusing on the illegal and human sides (suffering, prisoners families news, health conditions) Link it with local dimensions and context Similar groups do not necessarily coordinate their efforts (different level of online activity, and priorities are always not the same) Less dedication to media advocacy and decision makers lobbying Media Monitoring in the Digital Age

17. Thank You Shadi Abu-Ayyash Huston School of Film & Digital Media, NUI Galway shadi.abu-ayyash@nuigalway.ie http://actdigital.wordpress.com/ @shadi3000