Social media

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Frame

Wiki

A frame is a set of meaningful signs connected to specific types of social action. Together they create a 'logic' of action and make the action understandable for those involved in it.

Formats

Wiki

Formats are recognizably patterned forms of behavior, subject to norms and judged accordingly by others.

QArmy vs. QAnon Debunkers: The role of confirmation bias

Paper

Federica Morgandi

23/03/2020

12 minutes to read

QAnon is an American conspiracy theory associated with Trump supporters and right-wing politics. How can one article - which seeks to explain what QAnon is - influence debunkers and believers of the theory?

Ellen DeGeneres: talk show host or CIA agent?

Paper

Iris Dumoulin

16/03/2020

11 minutes to read

In 2018, people believed that Eric Trump suggested that Ellen DeGeneres is part of a hidden government within the US. This essay analyzes how this conspiracy theory has come into existence, who plays a role in it, and what this means online.

The (pseudo)science of profiling and surveillance

Column

Piia Varis

20/02/2020

9 minutes to read

Both online profiling and targeting as well as border surveillance are big business, but both also seem to rely on dubious scientific claims and foundations.

gravedigging, digital shaming, digital gravedigging, social media celebrities

Online gravedigging, identity and privacy

Column

Mingyi Hou

18/02/2020

11 minutes to read

This article analyzes gravedigging as a digital practice, and illustrates its roles in online shaming and celebrity image management activities.

Elisabeth Warren, clickbait and truth

Column

Jan Blommaert

20/01/2020

6 minutes to read

Elisabeth Warren's statement on her male contenders being "electoral losers" enables us to examine the ways in which clickbait actually works.

#warrenselfie, Elisabeth Warren posing for a selfie

Elizabeth Warren: Campaigning with selfies

Article

Rianne Janssen

10/02/2020

11 minutes to read

Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic candidate for the 2020 US presidential elections, uses the strategy of the ‘selfie lines’. What is it and how does it work?

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's populism and relatability

Article

Nikoletta Georgiou

17/02/2020

12 minutes to read

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is the youngest congresswoman ever to be elected and a rising political star. This article analyses her "relatable" media presence with regard to how it boosts her continuously growing influence.

Marginalization within the natural hair community

Article

Destiny Ursula

24/02/2020

12 minutes to read

The natural hair community has expanded massively over the past 20 years since the movement started in the US. Recently, however, individuals within the community have stared to marginalize certain hair textures, styles and lengths.