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Deletefacebook and Hashtag Activism in a Perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis

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Deletefacebook and Hashtag Activism in a Perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis Master Thesis (Two-Year) #DeleteFacebook and Hashtag Activism in a Perspective of Critical Discourse Analysis Student: Greta Bühring Semester: Spring 2021 Supervisor: Dr. Michael Krona Examiner: Dr. Bo Reimer Malmö University Abstract This thesis aims to conduct an in-depth study of the activism surrounding the #DeleteFacebook hashtag by applying Critical Discourse Analysis. By theorizing framing, digital colonialism, power relations, and antagonism, this thesis examines the qualitative analysis of 1.987 Tweets posted on Twitter between 20 February and 4 March 2021. This study identifies the key thematic content of these Tweets and then conducts an in-depth critical analysis. These questions will be addressed in the research: “What are the principle discourse typologies and their intertextual interpretation of hashtag activism #DeleteFacebook?”, “What were the key themes that emerged during the #DeleteFacebook hashtag movement?” and “How can we interpret the online engagement with #DeleteFacebook as hashtag activism?”. This thesis presents an analysis of #DeleteFacebook related Tweets through coding and then reveals an intertextual analysis of it, including the social context. Also, this study provides a thorough review of the related literature concerning the costs of connection, social movements, hashtag activism, and collective identity. Finally, it concludes with a discussion reflecting on the role of digital colonialism and the power of Facebook. Keywords: #DeleteFacebook, Hashtag Activism, Digital Colonialism, Power Relations, Antagonism, Critical Discourse Analysis, Framing 2 List of Figures Figure 1. Meme about data harvesting on Facebook ......................................... 9 Figure 2. Brian Acton tweets #DeleteFacebook................................................ 11 Figure 3. Frequency in use of #DeleteFacebook .............................................. 39 Figure 4. Framework for CDA ........................................................................... 45 Figure 5. Visual representation of the key themes ............................................ 48 List of Tables Table 1. The Scope of Tweets analysis ............................................................ 38 Table 2. The #DeleteFacebook campaign chronologically ............................... 40 Table 3. Coding of the Tweets .......................................................................... 41 Table 4. Coding stages ..................................................................................... 42 Table 5. Quantitative representation of the key themes ................................... 49 3 Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................. 2 List of Figures ..................................................................................................... 3 List of Tables ...................................................................................................... 3 Table of Contents ............................................................................................... 4 1. Introduction .................................................................................................. 6 2. Background of #DeleteFacebook ................................................................. 8 2.1. Celebrities and #DeleteFacebook ....................................................... 10 2.2. Critics .................................................................................................. 12 2.3. Twitter ................................................................................................. 13 2.4. #DeleteFacebook in Australia ............................................................. 14 3. Literature Review ....................................................................................... 16 3.1. The Cost of Connection ....................................................................... 16 3.2. Social Movements ............................................................................... 18 3.3. New Social Movements ....................................................................... 20 3.4. Hashtag activism ................................................................................. 21 3.5. Other studies of Hashtag activism ....................................................... 23 3.6. Collective Identity ................................................................................ 26 3.7. Resistance Movements ....................................................................... 18 4. Theory........................................................................................................ 27 4.1. Framing of Social Movements ............................................................. 27 4.2. Digital Colonialism ............................................................................... 29 4 4.3. Power Relations .................................................................................. 30 4.4. Antagonism ......................................................................................... 31 5. Research Design ....................................................................................... 33 5.1. Research Problem............................................................................... 33 5.2. Research Question .............................................................................. 34 5.3. Research Paradigm ............................................................................. 34 5.4. Limitations ........................................................................................... 35 5.5. Ethical Considerations......................................................................... 36 6. Methodology .............................................................................................. 37 6.1. Quantitative Analysis ........................................................................... 37 6.2. Qualitative Analysis ............................................................................. 44 6.2.1. Critical Discourse Analysis ........................................................... 44 6.2.2. Why CDA? .................................................................................... 46 7. Key findings and Analysis .......................................................................... 47 7.1. Presentation of Quantitative Content Analysis .................................... 47 7.2. Presentation of Qualitative Content Analysis ...................................... 50 7.2.1. Encouragement to Delete Facebook ............................................ 50 7.2.2. Resentment or antipathy expressed towards Data Privacy issues 57 8. Further Study ............................................................................................. 62 9. Discussion ................................................................................................. 63 10. Conclusion ................................................................................................. 65 11. References ................................................................................................ 70 5 1. Introduction This thesis aims to present and analyze the discourses that emerged during the #DeleteFacebook hashtag movement. The research will focus on the theoretical frameworks of framing, digital colonialism, power relations, and antagonism. Through the quantitative research method of coding and the qualitative method of critical discourse analysis, the main research question: “What are the principle discourse typologies and their intertextual interpretation of hashtag activism #DeleteFacebook?” will be addressed. In order to accomplish that, two subsidiary questions have been added: 1. What were the key themes that emerged during the #DeleteFacebook hashtag movement? 2. How can we interpret the online engagement with #DeleteFacebook as hashtag activism? The following is how the study is structured: the history and meaning of the #DeleteFacebook movement are discussed first. The second step is to review the relevant literature, including studies on the cost of connection, resistance towards power relations, social movements, hashtag activism, and collective identity. The thesis is supported by a two-part methodological framework: coding as quantitative analysis and critical discourse analysis as a qualitative method of in- depth analysis. The findings are then interpreted in accordance with the theoretical context. Finally, I give some concluding remarks as well as some implications for potential research in a discussion. The #DeleteFacebook online movement emerged after the 2018 Facebook- Cambridge Analytica scandal, where the profile data of 270,000 users was leaked and used for various purposes. This study analyzes the most recent spike of this movement‘s activity and presents a critical discourse analysis of the Tweets posted by the participants urging the boycott of Facebook. 6 The goal of this thesis is to contribute to the study of Media and Communications. There is no need to say that social media is a big part of everyday life; there is much research done about social media with different theories, methodologies, and approaches in academia. My research provides a clear structure that could be in use for future researchers. For social media analysis, especially hashtag movements, where the researcher can identify a specific topic, the combination of quantitative (coding) and qualitative (critical discourse analysis)
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