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chapter five Mass Media 2: Advocacy, Activism, and Social Change in the Digital Era: The Potential of Cyber-Action Manuela Ferrari, University of Toronto Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has. ––Margaret Mead I remember what it was like to be a student radical without the help of the Internet, or even a fax machine, to try to drum up some support for a cause. As a teenager in the 1960s, I protested against the war in Vietnam. I defended a doctor who championed women’s right to choose whether to have a child when they became pregnant. I criticized the Canadian government, then under Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, when it sent troops into Quebec to round up hundreds of innocent people after terrorists kidnapped a British diplomat and a Quebec cabinet minister. I was an activist, ’60s style...It was all about getting groups of people who really cared to tell other groups of people about your issues. It was all about word of mouth––but the word traveled at the speed of atoms, not bits. ––Don Tapscott (2009) It might not be the first time for some of you to find Margaret Mead’s quote at the beginning of an article or chapter related to advocacy and/or activism. I found this quote several times during my readings. I decided to open this chapter with Mead’s words because, first, I truly believe in the power of people, even if just a few, to generate social change and, second, 1 1 3 1 1 4 Ma n u e l a F e r r a r i I also believe that meaningful collaboration between people, enhanced by their ability to overcome differences in culture, status, generation, and/or knowledge, is the key to overcoming social inequity and promoting world changes. As described by Tapscott (2009), the way in which people have engaged in activism and advocacy has changed over time. The tools used by activists in the 1960s and 1970s were different from the ones currently available to people in the digital era. Activists in the present day still fight similar injustices and continue to engage in preserving human rights (e.g., the Vietnam War in the 1960s versus the recent war in Iraq; women’s rights to education and to vote versus women’s employment rights). However, the methods of organizing, communicating, and sharing the messages and tools used to gain political attention have changed (Fisher, 1998; Myers, 1994; Tapscott, 2009). In the digital era, traditional advocacy tools, such as sit-ins, demonstrations, and lobbying, have been integrated with new Internet-based tools (McNutt & Menon, 2008). The digital era, with the introduction of computers, the Internet, wireless networks, cellphones, and digital audio/video equipment, opened the doors to new forms of activism known as cyber-activism. Cyber-activism, or Internet activism, refers to the use of communication technologies such as email, websites, podcasts, and social networks to enable the faster dissemination of knowledge and resources to the public (McCaughey & Ayers, 2003; McNutt & Menon, 2008). Proper use of these technologies can enhance awareness in citizens and help them to organize, mobilize themselves, and take action or react to things that matter (McNutt & Menon, 2008; Myers, 1994). The purpose of this chapter is to explore how cyber-activism can help advocacy and activism initiatives within the eating-related disorders field. I aim to answer several questions, such as: What are the new Internetbased tools available for modern activists? How do activists utilize Internet -based communication? How are the new advocacy tools different from traditional ones used to change social systems and policies? And, finally, can Internet activism help eating disorder activists to organize, plan, and take action? While this chapter will answer those questions, the ultimate goal is to provide the reader with a new perspective on cyber-activism. It will define new tools to disseminate information as well as dynamically share insights and viewpoints on an authentic and engaged model for activism and advocacy aimed at broad social change. In the eating-related disorders field, advocacy can be used to reduce or control the incidence and prevalence of eating-related problems in the whole population, especially within its youngest members. Eating disorder prevention specialists are often engaged in advocacy initiatives, both at the practical and theoretical levels. Levine has identified and stressed the [18.219.22.169] Project MUSE (2024-04-24 18:48...

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