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Digital Future Report Finds that Online Communities Promote Activism
If you're wondering whether or not your nonprofit should have an online presence and strategy, read the 2007 Digital Future Report from the USC Annenberg School's Center for the Digital Future.
According to their press release, the study found that online communities are a, "catalyst for connection and activism":
"Online communities and offline action -- The Digital Future Project found that involvement in online communities leads to offline actions. More than one-fifth of online community members (20.3 percent) take actions offline at least once a year that are related to their online community. (An 'online community' is defined as a group that shares thoughts or ideas, or works on common projects, through electronic communication only.)
Social activism Participation in online communities leads to social activism. Almost two- thirds of online community members who participate in social causes through the Internet (64.9 percent) say they are involved in causes that were new to them when they began participating on the Internet. And more than 40 percent (43.7 percent) of online community members participate more in social activism since they started participating in online communities."
What are examples you've found of online communities being catalysts for activism? I'm particularly interested in hearing stories about how online activism created offline activism since some critics say that online activism is a poor substitute for taking action offline.
Hat Tip to Nancy Schwartz of the Getting Attention blog and her post about the Report, Media Habits of 12-24 Year-Olds vs. 25-54 Year-Olds -- Key to Shaping Your Nonprofit Marketing Agenda.
Photo Credit: Kety in Discussion by Jo Guldi
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- Thanks, Joe!
1 week 9 hours ago - Late to thank you for this incredible post
3 weeks 5 days ago - Thank you!
3 weeks 6 days ago
Online communities promote activism as do social enterprises
I'm encouraged by this merger of social activism fostered by an online presence. It's difficult to stand out in a commercial space around your political or moral ideas so I am willing to learn as much as possible from my non-profit supporters. My view was to take the social justice issue of fair wage employment, living wage, and the blue collar sector of our society and use a e-commerce platform solution to advocacy for the living wage. It's called, www.laborfair.com, and we are only now beginning to explore a blog and how it contributes to social activism. We're all throughout the Bay Area and now in Northern California, so check us out if you need household services direct and need to know what is fair.