ABSTRACT

Social media solicits a reaction, a response, a statement of either affirmation or negation. It is a fragmented form that demands to be formed and reformed by a crowd. This chapter argues that mass Web media, and social media in particular, are as bereft of context as they are immensely powerful provokers of affect. Social media presents a huge opportunity to advance human rights work; it also can interfere with it and even harm it. It is important to distinguish the comments about social media and its potential to forward human rights activism from the common ways social media has been seen to facilitate political activism. Social media "lives" by interaction. If not retweeted or shared, a tweet or post simply dies, or at best lies latent, having had its moment in the sun of the web. On the other hand, if picked up, it can go viral – which oddly means it becomes vibrant, alive, provocative.