Author
Books
Digital Activism Decoded: The New Mechanics of Change
This multi-author anthology was published in 2010 by iDebate Press, an imprint of the Open Society Institute’s Youth Initiative. It is the first book to attempt to map the field of digital activism in its entirety. The book begins with a section on Contexts, addressing not only the technology of network infrastructure, devices, and applications, but also the social, economic, and political environment in which digital activism occurs. An analysis of Practices follows, not in the usual format of case study analysis, but by presenting different ways of thinking about these practices. The section begins with a chapter on pre-digital social movement theory, while a second chapter takes the digital perspective of web ecology. Both constructive and destructive activism practices are discussed. The final section on Effects seeks to address the range of opinions on digital activism’s value. While optimists see the great potential for citizen empowerment, pessimists believe that the empowerment of forces of repression is equally likely. Skeptics view both askance and do not believe digital activism makes much difference at all. We leave the reader to draw his or her own conclusions. Please click the image at left to download the book, which is also available for sale in hard copy through Amazon.
Guides
Blog for a Cause!
This guide, written in 2007 for Global Voices Advocacy, explains how activists can use blogs in advocacy campaigns. Blogging is a quick and inexpensive way to create a presence on the Internet, to disseminate information about a cause, and to organize actions to lobby decision-makers. The goal of Blog for a Cause is twofold: to inform and to inspire. The guide is designed to be accessible and practical, giving activists a number of easy-to-follow tips on how to use a blog to further their particular cause. It also includes examples of successful advocacy blogs from such countries as Egypt, Guyana, Thailand, and the UK. Please click the image at left to download the guide.
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The Election Blogging Guide
This guide, written as an independent project in 2006, explains how blogs can be used to encourage public discourse around elections. The guide includes chapters on blogging strategies, election blog features, blogging anonymously, promoting your blog, and some case studies of recent election blogs from around the world. This guide was written with co-authors Solana Larsen, then editor at openDemocracy and now Managing Editor at Global Voices Online, and Zephyr Teachout, Director of Online Organizing for Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential campaign and later on the staff of the Sunlight Foundation. Please click the image at left to download the guide.
Research
Digital Activism Survey Report 2009
This report, co-written with Kate Brodock and Timo Zaeck in 2009 for the (now defunct) Research@DigiActive project is the first attempt to collect international demographic data on the new group we call “digital activists”. Key findings on the sample of 122 responses include the following:
Gender: Outside North America, male respondents outnumbered female respondents by a margin of 7 to 3. If this gap holds true for digital activists in general, this further challenges the gender-neutral identity of technology.
Platforms: Social networks are the most common “gateway drug” into digital activism.
Economics: Digital activists, particularly in developing countries, are much more likely than the population at large to pay a monthly subscription fee to have Internet at home, to be able to afford a high-speed connection, and to work in a white-collar job where Internet is also available. In short, digital activists are likely to be prosperous. Please click the image at left to download the report.
The Citizen Journalism Web Site OhmyNews
and the 2002 South Korean Presidential Election
This report, written in 2007 for the Internet & Democracy Project at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University, details the role of the citizen journalism web site OhMyNews on the 2002 presidential election in South Korea. In this historic election, online activists, aided by platforms like OhMyNews, were instrumental in bringing the progressive outsider Roh Moo-Hyun to office. The report, which is a result of secondary research and primary interviews, analyzes the social, economic, and political context of OhMyNews, as well as the site’s business model. Please click the image at left to download the report.
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Prospects for e-Advocacy in the Global South
This report, written in 2006 for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, explores how NGOs in the global south are using ICTs for advocacy and suggests interventions for the Gates Foundation. The report includes an overview of the challenges for digital activists in the global south, followed by different digital advocacy models, and recent innovations in the field. The report also includes several short “snapshots” of how activists in such countries as Kenya, Argentina, Malaysia, Zimbabwe, and India are using technologies like mobile phones, web sites, and video in advocacy campaigns. Please click the image at left to download the report.
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Morocco Raises its Voice:
A Brief Analysis of Political NGO’s in Morocco
This report, written in 2005 under the auspices of a Fulbright grant, analyzes the young field of political non-profits made possible through liberalization under the new King Mohammed VI. The report, which is the result of a year’s worth of interviews with Moroccan civil society activists, describes the activities of these organizations and segments them into four types: training, intellectual endeavors, advocacy and lobbying, and grassroots activism. The report conclude by suggesting ways that foreign NGOs can support these new Moroccan organizations and includes a glossary of the organizations interviewed. Please click the image at left to download the report.