Date of Award

2015

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Specialization

Communication and Leadership

School or Department

School of Leadership Studies

First Advisor

Dr. Pavel Schlossberg

Second Advisor

Dr. John Caputo

Abstract

This thesis examined the use of social media by student activists wanting to enact change in our society and specifically around the topic of immigration reform. Coordinated Management of Meaning Theory (CMM) was utilized to interpret the results of online interactions with those that are considered activists in the immigration reform movement. Research has shown that collectively we create our reality based on events and objects of our social world (Pearce & Cronen, 2006). Further, we also can see that humans create reality through interaction (Allen, 2005). The research conducted consisted of seven one-on-one interviews with current under-grad and graduate students attending school in eastern Washington State. The goal was to identity the use of social media as a tool for their activist work, and determine if utilizing this form of communication presented itself in their own sense of identity. This thesis revealed that the use of social media was prevalent in the work of student activists for disseminating information and promoting events to friends and followers. Various key themes emerged that allows us to see how social media is being used by activists: Facebook is the primary form of social media utilized, and it is used as a tool for dialogue with supporters and opponents alike as well as in activism efforts. The identity of the student activist is one that is created not only in personal experiences with others, but also created online also with the use of social media. The research also concluded that there are still students who prefer not to engage in debates online because of the hostility and prejudice encountered, thus requiring further examination into the use of social media as a way of interacting with each other when discussing sensitive topics such as immigration reform.

Comments

All rights reserved. 

Download

Share

COinS