Due to non-academic commitments, my experience of the debate was different than my peers. Because I was unable to witness the execution of the debate, I myself had to consider both sides of the argument from Dean’s article as well as the rebuttals that each group may use on the topic: social media inhibits sociopolitical change. Through considering the arguments of both sides of the argument, I found that I was able to understand Dean’s perspective fully on this topic since I did not have a bias when looking for Dean’s passages. I found this process fairly easy, as I did not need to take a stance on the topic and rather pick out the arguments that both groups may use from an objective lens. Given that I did not need to quantify which groups’ argument proved to be more convincing, my opinion on the topic has not swayed. In contrast to Dean’s resolution, I do believe that social media can create sociopolitical change.
I found the “against” argument more convincing, as this journal was written in the early 2000’s, when social media platforms did not have the power that they do today. As Dean stated, the circulation of the message is not only determined by the content, but the popularity of the message and the person who posted it. On several social media platforms, once a sociopolitical movement gains the attention of a celebrity or a famed figure with a large following, the word gets spread around quickly raising awareness for the issue, prompting change. After considering both sides of the argument, my opinion remains unwavering, that social media can create sociopolitical change.
Dissecting both sides of the argument made me reflect on how I contribute to the saturation of content on social media. For example, I have several accounts on the main social media networks such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. I find that most of my friends as well have several accounts whether to post more frequently for certain audiences or to curate different content on their respective feeds or simply because they forgot their password and needed a fresh start. As Dean discussed in her article, the fantasy of abundance enables anyone to participate which in the end, is a double-edged sword.