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Abstract

The recognition of social movements has increased in the recent decades, with the number of organisations and participants increasing. Research has shown that with the growth of institutional media and social media platforms, more individuals are exposed to images, videos and articles regarding social issues, leading them to become more aware and involved in political demonstrations. Consequently, this study will demonstrate how social movements have evolved in their complexity and if modern movements such as Black Lives Matter (BLM)solely depend on social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The focus will be on the way in which institutional media presented previous and contemporary social movements, concentrating on the 1960s Civil Rights and current BLM movement. Evidently, representations of Afro-Americans have swiftly changed from the slavery era, blaxploitation era down to the present-day society. Accordingly, much of this can be attributed to the growth of institutions including National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) but also to the changes in ordinary American values, which shifted from traditionalistic values to more modern, liberalist views with no divide based on colour or ethnicity. From pre-digitalisation era, this agenda was pushed further by modern social platforms, which can reach audience globally. Thus, there was a growth in AfroAmerican community on Twitter which was able to share raw images and footage of racism and blaxploitation. Hence, this gained mass attention and was unable to be disregarded by mass media and de facto needed to be reported. Consequently, this study showcases the development of social movements from the early press of the 19th Century to the mass and social media of the 21st Century, with large attention to the changing representation of Afro-Americans and their fight for equality.

Course: Media Studies - BA (Hons) - C1346

Date Deposited: 2022-08-10

URI/permalink: https://www.library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis13988.html