This thesis uses a comparative analysis to determine whether the underlying strategies that China employs in their propaganda efforts in regards to Taiwan during the modern age of social media and...Show moreThis thesis uses a comparative analysis to determine whether the underlying strategies that China employs in their propaganda efforts in regards to Taiwan during the modern age of social media and the internet are the same as the strategies that were employed in this field in the era between the defeat of the KMT in China and the invention of social media.Show less
Since the first oil-boom of the 1970s, the Arab Gulf countries have witnessed rapid socio-economic developments as a result of expansive oil-revenues. These rapid socioeconomic developments were...Show moreSince the first oil-boom of the 1970s, the Arab Gulf countries have witnessed rapid socio-economic developments as a result of expansive oil-revenues. These rapid socioeconomic developments were multifaceted, but in a region known for its social conservatism, it is interesting to explore the evolution of the position of women amid socio-economic changes. The expression of female agency offers numerous possibilities to explore this evolution in Arab-Gulf societies from a woman’s perspective, but it also offers challenges to Western academics as contemporary literature on female agency in the Arab Gulf is limited. In this thesis, I present a case study of the social media accounts of six Arab-Gulf women with a relatively large social media following. Research has been conducted into their social media posts to explain a changing attitude in female agency in the Arab Gulf, in terms of clothing, self-expression and positioning in their society. As all six women are part of the wealthier echelons of their society, it is interesting to observe that there is little cohesion in their posts to changing societal progress in terms of women’s rights. While the women seem to acknowledge societal change through their posts, none of them used their relatively large social media following to explicitly call out leaders to demand rights or to express gratitude for obtained rights. This research highlights the need for further exploration into the expression of female agency through the use of social media in a digitalizing world.Show less
Donald Trump was a highly controversial figure in the 2016 and 2020 elections. He presented himself as America’s hero (Mercieca, 2020). Trump's 2016 campaign was marked by an unique and...Show moreDonald Trump was a highly controversial figure in the 2016 and 2020 elections. He presented himself as America’s hero (Mercieca, 2020). Trump's 2016 campaign was marked by an unique and idiosyncratic rhetoric and campaigning style in which social media play a large role and especially his use of Twitter was remarkable (Polak, 2018). Trump’s rhetoric was full of pathos-driven techniques like: America first exceptionalism, hyperboles, repetition, fear appeals, ad populum and ad hominem arguments (Mercieca, 2020) while his rhetoric lacked complexity (Skinnel, 2018). Furthermore, Trump was known to distort facts (Skinnel, 2018). Although Trump was suspended from Twitter, begin January 2021, shortly after losing the election and the storming of the capitol took place, he has recently made a re-entrance on Twitter. The author of this paper wishes to contribute to the current research on Trump’s unique rhetorical style which continues to have a strong influence in America and do so by analysing Trump’s Twitter use during the 2020 elections, making use of a corpus based approach supplemented by a qualitative analysis of his rhetoric.Show less
More than 95%. This is the highly alarming number of incidents of sexual violence in Japan that are not reported to the police according to a study from 2018.1 In fact, in Japan, sexual crimes...Show moreMore than 95%. This is the highly alarming number of incidents of sexual violence in Japan that are not reported to the police according to a study from 2018.1 In fact, in Japan, sexual crimes continue to carry a heavy stigma and society’s approach to it remains sexist and archaic.2 From 2017, #MeToo, a hashtag constituted of two simple but powerful words has travelled around the world enabling women to voice their allegations of sex crimes. This movement could have been the opportunity to break the silence about sexual violence in Japan, nonetheless, it did not seem to take root in the country. This thesis aims to shed light on the struggle endured by victims of sexual violence in Japan who dared to speak up in a society unwilling to understand their pain. This thesis intends to dive into this matter and analyse how the adverse reactions to allegations of sex crimes reflect Japanese society’s stance toward the #MeToo movement.Show less
Due to the Venezuelan Exodus, Peru has received over 1,2 Million Venezuelan immigrants, provoking a turn towards the criminalization and securitization of migration. This study adopts a Discourse...Show moreDue to the Venezuelan Exodus, Peru has received over 1,2 Million Venezuelan immigrants, provoking a turn towards the criminalization and securitization of migration. This study adopts a Discourse-Historical Approach to investigate how Venezuelan immigrants in Peru are socio-politically criminalized in news articles by Exitosa Noticias shared on Facebook in February 2021. In a second part, the public response to these articles will be examined through an analysis of the Facebook comments, which can give an indication of discourse patterns on Venezuelan migration among a subgroup of the Peruvian population. The main findings are that news coverage by Exitosa Noticias and the dominant discourse perpetuated by their readership has strong elements of criminalization. By use of referential and predicational strategies, the Venezuelan immigrants are represented negatively in the comments and often linked to criminality.Show less
Even though scholars have extensively researched the underrepresentation of women in U.S. politics, the focus has always been on the existing political system and the traditional campaign...Show moreEven though scholars have extensively researched the underrepresentation of women in U.S. politics, the focus has always been on the existing political system and the traditional campaign mechanisms. Drawing on the concepts counter-hegemony and counter-public and through conducting an Ethnographic Media Content Analysis, I research the possibilities of approaching politics in a different way, beyond the status quo. In doing so, I focus on the way in which Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is using social media platforms for political campaign purposes. Analyzing several performances of AOC in the media, I argue that, ultimately, AOC has created a counter-public in the media sphere, through which she serves the counter-hegemonic purpose of confronting the traditional ways of political campaigning. Subsequently, I examine the implications of AOC’s counter-public and discuss how it can be seen as an example for other women, that is, how her example of campaigning can contribute to increasing the representation of women in U.S. Politics when they shape their campaigns differently than the norm.Show less
This thesis will focus on the popularisation of the feminist movement. It will look into how several influential mainstream Instagram trends, such as the VSCO Girls and the Insta-Baddies,...Show moreThis thesis will focus on the popularisation of the feminist movement. It will look into how several influential mainstream Instagram trends, such as the VSCO Girls and the Insta-Baddies, incorporate feminist ideals in their aesthetic. Nowadays, stereotypical gender imagery is not only visible in advertisements, films and pop culture anymore, but also on social media. Platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, where imagery is the main component, have a humongous influence on its users’ way of thinking, and with that their self-image and self-esteem. Through the past decade, there has been risen more attention for these so-called toxic social media habits. New online social media trends try to reprogram the well-known stereotypes and toxic aspects. The focus of this thesis is, therefore, on the influence feminism has on visual media, specifically female performativity in Instagram posts. Do women challenge or perform the Male Gaze? Could there be said that current Instagram aesthetics execute feminist ideals? The trends will be analysed (loosely) based on the Roman stylistics of translatio, imitatio and aemulatio. This will show where we are currently finding ourselves in the progress of challenging the Male Gaze and executing feminist ideals online. It will show that there has been made quite some progress, especially in mainstream culture, but that there is still a long way to go as well.Show less
In the last couple of years, scholars have been arguing a decline in political participation, especially among young people. The Fridays for Future movement with thousands of young climate strikers...Show moreIn the last couple of years, scholars have been arguing a decline in political participation, especially among young people. The Fridays for Future movement with thousands of young climate strikers counters these statements. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the facilitating role of social media on youth political participation. This thesis analyses how social media contributes to the formation of a collective group identity of social movements, which in turn could lead to collective political action. To answer this question, content analysis of comments on three Instagram posts by Fridays for Madrid have been used, looking at the four foundations of collective group identity: solidarity, emotional attachment, group cohesion and activist-based identification. The results demonstrate the facilitating function of social media in the formation of collective group identity, by enabling more easily and frequently interaction between participants and the social movement compared to offline social movement activities.Show less
This thesis looked at how political parties utilize social media platforms as part of their electoral strategies. To that end, the research explored the case study of Latvia through the center...Show moreThis thesis looked at how political parties utilize social media platforms as part of their electoral strategies. To that end, the research explored the case study of Latvia through the center-right populist party Kam pieder valsts [Who Owns the State] and center-right Jaunā konservatīvā partija [New Conservative Party] using content analysis methods on the parties’ pre-election Facebook entries. The research found that the two Latvian political parties utilized social media platforms predominantly to broadcast information, news, party stances/program, criticisms and attacks, and other content that does not utilize the interactive potential of social media. Furthermore, the populist party made extensive use of social media to advertise its on the ground activities, supplementing its offline strategy.Show less
The article examines the use of social media during crisis events. In this particular case, the focus is on the use of Twitter in meaning-making processes during terrorist attacks in Paris and...Show moreThe article examines the use of social media during crisis events. In this particular case, the focus is on the use of Twitter in meaning-making processes during terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels. The article examines how visual material in the form of images was used on Twitter in order to create counter-discourses alongside the dominant discourse.Show less
Has the internet, and in particular social media, increased political polarization in presidential elections in the United States? Political polarization has been increasing in recent years....Show moreHas the internet, and in particular social media, increased political polarization in presidential elections in the United States? Political polarization has been increasing in recent years. Ideological polarization is mainly caused by elite polarization and partisan media. In periods of presidential elections, however, social media plays a big role in influencing the public via candidate’s online campaigns but also via online activity of partisan media. The factor of engagement and the ability to create a partisan “echo chamber” on online platforms are reasons why social media has an impact on the electorate. This thesis finds that the internet and social media have had a noticeable impact on political polarization in presidential elections in the United States, but are not a sole or main cause of the increase.Show less
On the 14th of February, 2018, the United States was confronted with yet another school shooting. This time it was at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Nicolas Cruz killed...Show moreOn the 14th of February, 2018, the United States was confronted with yet another school shooting. This time it was at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Nicolas Cruz killed 17 people and injured another 14 people with an assault rifle he legally obtained. As mass shootings are a common occurrence in the United States, reactions to one are often predictable and changes regarding gun control are lacking. However, in recent years new actors, in the form of social media, have come to play a role in the aftermath of mass shootings. In the case of the Parkland shooting, social media played a role in crisis communication and in creating both an online and offline activist movement called the Never Again movement. Through different activist efforts, this movement is trying to achieve the implementation of sensible gun laws. By analysing the current gun debate and gun problem in the United States, and by researching the role of social media in the Never Again movement, this thesis will be able to assess the impact of social media on the Parkland shooting and its aftermath.Show less
In 2013, the elections in Cambodia ended in a surprising result with the opposition party, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), getting almost as many votes as the main party, the Cambodia's...Show moreIn 2013, the elections in Cambodia ended in a surprising result with the opposition party, the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP), getting almost as many votes as the main party, the Cambodia's People Party (CPP). Since 1993, no political party had been able to be an actual threat for the CPP. In this thesis, the reasons for this sudden rise in popularity of the CNRP will, therefore, be identified. It will be shown that the rise in social media and youth political participation positively influenced the rising popularity of the CNRP.Show less
