Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018

Digitally networked action (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012) has become a prominent political reality. This article explores the evolution of digitally networked action, considering the Twitter hashtag #HomeToVote in 2018 as a relevant case. The case study features the return of Irish expatriates to t...

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Main Author: Xixuan Zhang
Format: Article
Language:deu
Published: Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG 2022-03-01
Series:Studies in Communication, Media
Online Access:https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/2192-4007-2021-4-502
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author Xixuan Zhang
author_facet Xixuan Zhang
author_sort Xixuan Zhang
collection DOAJ
description Digitally networked action (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012) has become a prominent political reality. This article explores the evolution of digitally networked action, considering the Twitter hashtag #HomeToVote in 2018 as a relevant case. The case study features the return of Irish expatriates to their home country to vote in the referendum on abortion rights, since no postal votes were available to Irish citizens abroad. We investigated how actors participated in digitally networked action on Twitter, viewed from three perspectives: composition, diffusion, and dynamics. Through an @-mention network with 7,373 edges and 5,198 nodes, built on all original tweets (N = 33,927) about #HomeToVote, we interpreted the digitally networked action based on social interaction and information distribution between and beyond categorized subgroups of actors during four phases. The early phases of #HomeToVote are related to engagement and mobilization, while the latter phases are associated with experience sharing and solidarity declaration. Throughout the development of #HomeToVote, individuals and organizational actors show collective endeavors to promote digitally networked action, while media actors use Twitter to consistently depict moments of #HomeToVote. The findings suggest that #HomeToVote, as an organizationally enabled advocacy network, has a large political capacity to share communication linkages, facilitate flexible affiliations, and employ personalized engagement mechanisms.
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spelling doaj.art-a1a5758fac414b219a590f65dcd886e02023-03-16T11:41:31ZdeuNomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KGStudies in Communication, Media2192-40072022-03-0110450253210.5771/2192-4007-2021-4-5021057712192400720214502Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018Xixuan ZhangDigitally networked action (Bennett & Segerberg, 2012) has become a prominent political reality. This article explores the evolution of digitally networked action, considering the Twitter hashtag #HomeToVote in 2018 as a relevant case. The case study features the return of Irish expatriates to their home country to vote in the referendum on abortion rights, since no postal votes were available to Irish citizens abroad. We investigated how actors participated in digitally networked action on Twitter, viewed from three perspectives: composition, diffusion, and dynamics. Through an @-mention network with 7,373 edges and 5,198 nodes, built on all original tweets (N = 33,927) about #HomeToVote, we interpreted the digitally networked action based on social interaction and information distribution between and beyond categorized subgroups of actors during four phases. The early phases of #HomeToVote are related to engagement and mobilization, while the latter phases are associated with experience sharing and solidarity declaration. Throughout the development of #HomeToVote, individuals and organizational actors show collective endeavors to promote digitally networked action, while media actors use Twitter to consistently depict moments of #HomeToVote. The findings suggest that #HomeToVote, as an organizationally enabled advocacy network, has a large political capacity to share communication linkages, facilitate flexible affiliations, and employ personalized engagement mechanisms.https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/2192-4007-2021-4-502
spellingShingle Xixuan Zhang
Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
Studies in Communication, Media
title Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
title_full Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
title_fullStr Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
title_full_unstemmed Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
title_short Understanding digitally networked action: A case study of #HomeToVote and the Irish abortion referendum 2018
title_sort understanding digitally networked action a case study of hometovote and the irish abortion referendum 2018
url https://www.nomos-elibrary.de/10.5771/2192-4007-2021-4-502
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