Abstract

Despite democratizing discourse using new technologies, different studies have shown the internet and social media have limits in the public sphere when it comes to developing identities or long term collective actions. This paper analyzes the thematic centrality and participation in the hashtag #NiUnaMenos, which was part of a collective demonstration carried out in November 2016. Using screen-scraping, an analysis of 118,974 tweets was conducted. This analysis revealed Twitter can be used as a diffusion tool and a place of collective action against gender violence. However, Twitter cannot be considered a platform for building a social consensus or for changing preconceived ideas. This article concludes that Twitter can be used to expand a specific social protest event -a demonstration- through the thematic positioning of terms related to that event. Nevertheless, Twitter is not a useful tool for discussing or dismanteling the patriarchy and sexism.

Abstract

The gestation and consolidation of feminist activism that has brought together thousands of communication professionals in Spain, following the strike called on March 8, 2018 are analyzed. United through the Telegram messaging application and through the hashtag #lasperiodistasparamos on Twitter, a speech analysis of the 13,163 tweets published with this label, from February to September 2018, has been carried out. The content of the conversations on their Telegram channel has also been analyzed as well as the opinions formulated in in-depth interviews with 20 activists of this cyber community. Through a quantitative and qualitative methodology applied to categories extracted in the speeches, the causes of this activism, the effectiveness of its channels of organization and communication and the initiatives derived in the urban space have been observed. In conclusion, this pioneering awareness of union between Spanish communication professionals has been motivated by the crisis of capitalism and by a new global, technological and intergenerational feminist wave. This activism has managed for the first time to cover feminism from the mass media and has added to the protest women of different ages, ideologies and professions. In addition, it has resulted in the constitution of various organizations and associations of journalism professionals, smaller networks with the ability to decide and act for feminism within the urban space in regional areas. Especially they work for deontological awareness for the gender perspective in journalistic production.