Danielle Ku, 20473297

Faculty of Humanities, Curtin University

NETS2002: Social Media, Communities and Networks

Dr. Benn Ende

April 7, 2025

Abstract

In recent years, social media platforms have fundamentally altered the ways individuals engage with advocacy and activism. One platform that has played a particularly significant role in online advocacy is Twitter (or X). The 280 character limit (25, 000 when you purchase the monthly Premium subscription), use of hashtags, and just the overall global reach of Twitter allows their users to raise awareness about their movements and point of views as well as rallies their supporters to challenge political and social norms. This paper explores the connection of identity and online advocacy, in particular; focusing on how Twitter serves as a platform for individuals to form, asset, and reshape their identities in the context of advocacy (BOYD, 2010, pp. 232–243). It considers the role Twitter has in today’s contemporary digital landscape and examines how users craft their online personas, engage with their communities’ causes, and participate in social movements. Through an analysis of various movements, we discuss how Twitter facilitates the creation of online identities that are deeply intertwined with advocacy goals.

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Social media platforms, particularly Twitter, have emerged as important and dynamic tools for individuals and groups to convey their identities and standpoints while engaging in advocacy. The connection between identity and online advocacy is complex and evolves at a rapid pace. Twitter has become a vital space for individuals to express their personal beliefs, share their experiences, and rally behind causes that they care about. The ability to communicate with a global audience in real time, paired with features such as hashtags, retweets, and mentions has allowed movements to gain visibility, organize protests, and drive social change.

While Twitter offers significant advantages for those who seek to participate in advocacy, it also raises challenges that relate to privacy, misinformation, and identity manipulation. As such, the relationship between online identity and advocacy requires us to look at it through a magnifying glass and not just take it at face value.This paper seeks to explore how identity is constructed and communicated through online advocacy on Twitter, with particular attention to how users navigate the platform to promote social change and self-expression.

The Role of Twitter in Identity Formation

In today’s digital age, identity formation has become an increasingly public process. Online stages, such as Twitter, allows their users to construct and project their identity that aligns with their personal values, beliefs, and causes. The platform creates a space for self-presentation, where individuals are given the ability to emphasize particular aspects of their identity, whether it be political, social, or personal. This self-presentation is shaped by the larger social and political context where identity is both a reflection of personal experience, and a response to collective movements (BOYD, 2010, pp. 232–243). One of the central features of identity formation on Twitter is the ability to engage in what is known as “hashtag activism”. Hashtags serve as an entry point for beginners on Twitter to signal their allegiance to specific causes or movements. For instance, hashtags like #BlackLivesMatter, #MeToo, #ArtistSupport, and #ClimateStrike has allowed users to identify themselves publicly with the related social movements.These hashtags have become markers to symbolise the identity that individuals have adopted to communicate their support for the causes that they resonate with. It also creates a sense of solidarity and belonging amongst the community as users collectively raise their voices in attempts to let their opinions and beliefs be heard. Furthermore, Twitter’s open and global nature means that identities are not restricted to just their local or national boundaries. Users are able to connect with other individuals in countries all over the world who have the same core beliefs and experiences as them (Graham, 2018), and can therefore build relationships no matter the cultural and geographical differences. Individuals are also given the opportunity to broaden their views and perspectives on the movements and identities they are advocating, as their traditional way of viewing a particular cause may be challenged through the notions of different nationalities (Brusseau, 2025) and cultures while they exchange knowledge between countries.

Identity and Advocacy: The Digital Activist Persona

The concept of the “digital activist persona” is another important aspect of identity construction on Twitter. In the context of online advocacy, individuals will use their digital presence to show that they are aligned with their cause as either a supporter or a leader. These intricate personas are crafted through a combination of language, visuals, and the content they share on the platform. For example, an artist who has a presence on the app may use the hashtag “ArtistSupport” and tweet regularly about supporting human artists instead of A.I artists and include their own art to not only support their statements but also promote their work. They would use keywords that appeal to their targeted audience, as well as follow and engage with other artists who value and advocate the same core belief. A critical part of digital activism on Twitter, is the ability to frame your own identity in opposition to the dominating cultural narrative that society has placed on your community. Activists often use Twitter as a way to challenge structures of power (Tufekci, 2017, pp. 8–13) by asserting marginalised identities within their posts and profiles. For example, users who struggle with mental health may use Twitter as a way to express their experiences and encourage other people who may suffer from the same struggles as them, or use it to bring awareness to aspects to their condition that people outside of that community may not have known about. They may also use Twitter to challenge societal norms around their condition and push for changes towards how people suffering from it are treated and what the government can provide for them. Twitter provides them with the ability to connect with other individuals who also suffer from mental health disorders, allowing them to build solidarity and amplify their voices in a way that would normally be difficult to achieve and slow in action in traditional outlets. The formation of these digital activist personas are influenced by a combination of individualistic agencies and collective participation amongst the members of their community. While individuals choose the causes they support and how they present it and themselves online, they are also defined by the larger movements they participate in. This means that boundaries between personal identity and collective advocacy become blurred on Twitter as user’s actions, language and online behaviours are often interlaced with the larger goals of the movements they engage with.

Twitter and Collective action: Hashtag Movements and Viral Advocacy

Twitter has become a central hub for organizing collective online action (Obia, 2023), particularly through the use of viral hashtags. Movements like #BlackLivesMatter and #MeToo gained traction and global attention through Twitter’s ability to connect people across borders and oceans. These movements use the platform to boost their stories, assemble their participants, and hold those in power accountable for their actions and statements (Tufekci, 2017, pp. 8–13). The viral nature of these hashtags signify that individuals who identify themselves as advocates are tied to a larger social phenomenon, therefore making it easier for allies to identify each other and participate in online advocacy, even if they themselves do not have a large following backing them up. Hashtags are more than just tools for categorizing content – they also function as an instrument to unite diverse individual voices under a common purpose. When a hashtag goes viral, it becomes a symbol of solidarity and gives users a sense of identity when they choose to participate in the movement. The case of the #MeToo movement makes this fact quite evident as it allowed individuals to share their experiences with sexual harassment and assault (Graham, 2018). Not only did the hashtag enable its users to identify with the movement, it also allowed them to reclaim their narratives in a safe environment, when it had been difficult in the past to even mention it to close friends and family. Although the concept of the “hashtag activism” has been criticised for being performative and exaggerated as critics believe that the showmanship of it suggests that online engagement will not lead to real-world change, the impact of Twitter’s ‘hashtag’ movements should not be underestimated. Even though online activism may seem superficial and short-lived with a bunch of entitled karens and keyboard warriors at the helm of it, this can actually lead to significant shifts in discussions and is indeed capable of placing pressure for change in society, as well as increase the visibility of marginalised groups who don’t have any voice otherwise. Twitter’s role in amplifying advocacy, even if virtual, is essential to modern social movements.

The Risks and Challenges of Online Advocacy: Privacy, Misinformation & Digital Security

While Twitter does offer a variety of opportunities to its users for identity formation and advocacy, it also presents a number of risks and challenges. One of the key concerns for digital activists is privacy. Advocacy movements often involve individuals sharing their own personal stories and experiences, which in turn can be used against them as cynics and opposers may take advantage and hide behind their screens while they harass and dox the OP (original poster), which may lead to physical harm in some extreme cases. So although the visibility that Twitter provides can be empowering, it is also a double edged sword as it can become dangerous for the individuals who advocate their beliefs (Graham, 2018), especially if it happens to be for controversial or unpopular causes. Digital security is a major concern for the activists that is tied in with the risk of exposed privacy. The fact that authorities and governments have an ability to monitor and suppress online activism has led to an increase in surveillance on most digital platforms. Activists who rely on Twitter as a means to advocate for political change, for instance, may find themselves a target of governments, corporate entities, or even hostile individuals who seek to silence the voices of the movement as their words actually hold power against these powerhouses (Obia, 2023). Another posing threat to the usage of Twitter as a place for online advocacy is the issue of misinformation. The speed as to which Twitter’s news spreads, combined with its open nature, makes the information dealt susceptible to the circulation of false or misleading narratives. Due to this, the public’s understanding of social issues can be easily distorted (Abidin, 2021) and the credibility of the efforts of advocates are undermined. For example, during movements like #BlackLivesMatter, misinformation about events or the actions of a high-profiled individual could lead to confusion and detracts the movement and its participants from the main goal and message. The risks associated with digital advocacy forces activists to consider the security of their online identities, as well as take measures to protect themselves and their families from cyber threats.

As Twitter continues to shape online advocacy, it will continue to majorly influence how individuals construct and communicate their identities. The connection between identity and online advocacy is complex and intricately woven together into a chaotically organized web, and it requires activists to navigate both the opportunities and risks of engaging in digital activism, no matter how small. While the platform has opened up new approaches for solidarity, empowerment, and global connection, it has also in turn exposed its users to new forms of surveillance, misinformation, and harassment. The future of identity and advocacy on Twitter will most likely be influenced by the continuous evolution of technological tools and social movements, as well as changes in platform policies. The role Twitter takes in shaping public discourse, empowering marginalized voices, and enabling collective action shall remain central and significant to digital activism as a whole. In saying this, however, for individuals who consider using Twitter as a platform to advocate for their beliefs, I cannot stress enough about the importance of staying cautious and vigilant of the challenges you will face when making use of the digital space, and working towards protecting yourselves against the risks that follow while taking full advantage of the opportunities given to you to make a positive impact on social changes. 

Reference List:

Abidin, C. (2021). From “networked publics” to “refracted publics”: A companion framework for researching “below the radar” studies. Social Media + Society, 7(1), 205630512098445. https://doi.org/10.1177/2056305120984458

BOYD, D. (2010). A networked self identity, community, and culture on social network sites (pp. 232–243). Routledge.

Brusseau, J. (2025). View of ethics of identity in the time of big data | first monday. Firstmonday.org. https://firstmonday.org/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/9624/7756

Graham, M. (2018). The routledge companion to media and activism (G. Meikle, Ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315475059

Obia, V. (2023). Twitter activism: Understanding the twittersphere as the foremost community for activism and dragging in nigeria. New Media & Society, 146144482311729-146144482311729. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614448231172967

Tufekci, Z. (2017). Twitter and tear gas: The power and fragility of networked protest (pp. 8–13). Yale University Press.