DIGITAL PROTEST +ONLINE ACTIVISM

( ENGLISH 4569 | DR. CHRISTA TESTON )

SPRING 2016 DENNEY HALL W+F 12:45-2:05

Protest. Persuasion. Production. A digital media seminar.

semester location day + time

Now more than ever the Internet, mobile phones, and social media are central actors in protests, social movements, and other awareness campaigns. Digital composing technologies such as these have the power to shape public opinion, organize collective action, and mobilize resources. But what does it mean to say an interface has politics? How do we determine that an online protest has been successful? What is cyberterrorism? Cyberfeminism? And can we really affect meaningful social change online, or are we just engaging in what some call “slacktivism”?

In this course, we will use rhetorical and media studies theory as guides for exploring these questions while investigating, experimenting with, and critiquing a wide range of digital tactics for enacting digital protest and online activism.