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A net advantage? The internet, grassroots activism and American Middle-Eastern policy

Queen's University, Canada, marmuras{at}post.queensu.ca

The uses to which social movements and other grassroots actors put the internet have gained considerable attention from researchers. Often, the internet's role in helping some activists to attain their goals has been cited as evidence that internet technology offers greater benefits to marginal interests than to those already enjoying access to mainstream political and media institutions. This article investigates the possibility that activist networks striving to alter American state policies towards Israel and Palestine will enjoy relatively greater advantages from their use of the internet than those working to uphold the political status quo. Evidence suggests that while the internet has become indispensable for the social movement organizations under consideration, it is unlikely to help them overcome the most significant barriers to influencing government policies and/or public opinion.

Key Words: activism • internet • mass media • political opportunity • relative advantage • social movements • state interests • status quo

New Media & Society, Vol. 10, No. 2, 247-271 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1461444807086469


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