Online activism at odds: Exploring tensions in the everyday practice of ‘professional’ and ‘social media’ activists

This paper investigates how two groups of activists – ‘professional’ (civil society members) and ‘independent’ activists (using primarily social media for activism) – construct the political power of digital technologies in everyday practice. We focus on how the daily practice of activists draws on both individual experiences and societal macro-discourses to develop a range of discursive resources and subject positions in the symbolic construction of digital activism. Based on a critical discourse analysis of 18 semi-structured interviews, the findings reveal three tensions between discourse and practice, namely: digital activism vs. boots-on-the-ground activism; horizontalism vs. formal organization; and private vs. activist (digital) lives. We argue that despite their persistence, the promises of technology for social justice offered by hegemonic techno-utopian discourses do not neatly fit activist practice. In the complex, messy, and fluid context of everyday life, such promises and ideals are often negotiated, reappropriated, adapted, or rejected by activists. Democratic values are thus not inscribed in technology: local context, organizational structure, and individual factors shape the ways digital technologies help or hinder digital activism. We advise citizen activists to critically consider dominant techno-utopian discourses, particularly their simplified picture of political decision-making processes. Such awareness can better equip citizens when dealing with the tensions generated by their own activist practice.