Suh Chan S, Vasi Ion Bogdan, Chang Paul Y
Boise State University, United States.
University of Iowa, United States.
Soc Sci Res. 2017 Jul;65:282-293. doi: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2017.01.004. Epub 2017 Jan 17.
This study explores the role played by social media in reshaping the repression-mobilization relationship. Drawing on the case of the Occupy Wall Street movement, we examine the impact of Facebook and Twitter on the spatial diffusion of protests during a period of heightened state repression. Results from event history analyses suggest that the effects of repression on protest diffusion are contingent on the presence of social media accounts supporting the movement. We find that state repression at earlier protest sites encouraged activists to create Facebook and Twitter accounts in their own cities, which then served as important vehicles for the initiation of new Occupy protests. Moreover, results suggest that repression incidents can directly facilitate future protests in cities that already have Occupy Facebook accounts. This study highlights the potential of social media to both mediate and moderate the influence of repression on the diffusion of contemporary movements.
本研究探讨了社交媒体在重塑压制与动员关系中所扮演的角色。以“占领华尔街”运动为例，我们考察了在国家压制加剧时期，脸书和推特对抗议活动空间扩散的影响。事件史分析结果表明，压制对抗议扩散的影响取决于支持该运动的社交媒体账户的存在。我们发现，早期抗议地点的国家压制促使活动人士在自己所在城市创建脸书和推特账户，这些账户随后成为发起新的“占领”抗议活动的重要工具。此外，结果表明，压制事件能够直接推动在已有“占领”脸书账户的城市中未来的抗议活动。本研究凸显了社交媒体在调解和缓和压制对当代运动扩散影响方面的潜力。
