Turfekci's Social Theory

The purpose of this essay is to review and interpret the accounts given in Twitter and Tear Gas by Zeynep Tufekci, to analyze how she utilizes social theory in her book to form arguments regarding the progressive relationship social media and social movements have developed over time. As well as address the theoretical principles of two social theorists, (Amartya Sen, ) referenced by Tufekci and explain the usefulness of those principles to assist in evaluating her writing as a work of social theory.
Tufekci aims to create a framework to convey her ideology on the rapid development of networked public spheres and the power that it can have in a society by referencing social movements that have occurred throughout the world. Being that she …show more content…
Throughout the book Tufekci mentions various social movements from the present and the past that she compares and provides her own analysis on. One of the organizations she focuses on is the Tea Party and she illustrates through her capacities approach the movements ability to utilize all three capacities; which has arguably had a greater impact on policy in the United States than most other movements. She measures the Tea Party’s power and success by breaking down its structure and organization. Like most other movements the Tea Party received its start due to a viral event on television, which brought it large scale attention fulfilling its narrative capacity. The attention the movement receieved heavily impacted the amount of individuals who came out in support of the movements cause, demonstrating their feeling of unity by protesting alongside them in mass amounts. This notion was a signal to those in power of the strength and support in numbers that they had accumulated, however their focus on electoral capacity is what led to their ultimate success. Through usage of digital tools and street protests the Tea Party was able gather a large following and form a foundation which assisted in their ability to interact with individuals who held positions in office. Once having access to social policy change, the intimidation of the …show more content…
Thus producing a capacities approach that enables measurement of ‘movement success’ and how prosperous the organization was in achieving its goal. All movements carry a mix of capacities based on their “interests, goals, culture, and resources”, and analyzing a movements capacity as a framework allows for a better understanding of the complex dynamics that make up capacities and the significant role that digital technology has with all of it. The analysis Tufekci provides on her examples of social movements allows for her to establish the idea of digital technology impacting the narrative, disruptive, and electoral capacities of movements, and validating that notion through her in-depth examination of the various key factors in movements that make or break