social to political to radicalized movements

social to political to radicalized movements

The world has observed a fair share of fights from wars that span from social to political to radicalized movements. However, in the recent past, threatening events such as the rise in global temperatures have sprung a different type of war: activism. Activism, in simpler definition, is the policy or action of using the vigorous campaign to bring about change, either political or social. In a more detailed understanding, activism encompasses efforts that promote, impeded, or intervene with social, economic, environmental, or political reforms with the desire to improve society (Waltz). With such intent, individuals passionate about change have come in different shapes and sizes as well as forms. For instance, take the recent sensation on climate change, the 16-year old Greta Thunberg, who has radicalized youths around the world to stand up for their future in a global campaign on action against climate change. Her impact has been physical, yet, some take on the power of pen and paper to induce change. Such individuals are known as media activists.

Nonetheless, this form of activism has its fair share of complexities and existentialism. Scholars such as Mitzi Waltz and Leah Lievrouw have expounded on media activism, indicating a specialization in tenets such as media research methods and methodologies. According to Waltz, media activism requires a strong sense of factual understanding and reader understanding. To do so, writers have to comprehend the different forms of research to pass on the vital information that readers require. Concerning this, the following paper seeks to delve into media activism, extrapolating the purpose of media activism alongside the analysis of media activism research methods. For this to be, the paper shall evaluate the article, Record-Breaking Heat Amplified Waves of Student Climate Protests, in 2019 by Gramling, Carolyn from the Science News.org website.

Media Activism

Media activism requires the use of the communication platform to convey messages of political or social movements. Waltz indicates that media activism is often used for different purposes. However, the underlying concept is to mobilize individuals towards a specific cause. For instance, the primary article of evaluation for this essay is based on climate change. From a bird’s eye view, there have been conflicting indications about climate change. In order for the writer to convey the right message so as to impact on a movement, there are specific methods that the writer has to use. The article by Gramling provides a brief understanding of the reader what the article is about. From the title, there are key terms that are used for the article, such as climate change and students. The uniqueness of this article is that Waltz indicates that mainstream media must have a characteristic understanding of how a specific public matter impacts tenets of structural, economic, ideological, or political factors. Aligning this statement with the article, it is evident that Gramling has a crucial understanding of how impactful the terminologies such as ‘students’ and ‘climate change’ will get the attention of the reader. Therefore, the use of such terminologies confers to the definition of media activism, which is the notion of creating a movement.

Media activism also contains an agenda-setting protocol. In any editorial process, according to Waltz, explains that media activism should encompass newsworthiness material. In the explanation, Waltz dictates that news reporting not only contains professional journalism; it should also contain partial responsibility. Determining such entities can be difficult. However, an in-depth analysis of the article published by Gramling discloses that despite being a mobilization article, it is also a newsworthy article. For example, the article focuses not only on the issues of climatic change, but it also focuses on student protests. Gramling has a unique method of allowing the reader to understand that not only is climate change a present issue; it is also an issue that will highlight the survival of the future generation. To do so, the writer, Gramling, focuses on the growing campaign by the young generation fighting for their right for survival. It can be argued that having such an impactful article can be profit-oriented, given that Waltz emphasizes that mainstream media only focuses on profit-generating news. Nonetheless, the notable concept of the article gives it more meaning to media activism than any other concept.

For this news article to qualify as a media activism article, it is prudent to conduct an evaluation of the research methods the writer utilized. This fact is based on the scholar’s work, Waltz, who insists that empirical research not only applies to science, but it also applies to activism, especially in mainstream media. Research methods in media activism are defined as evidential and observational information that deploy different techniques in handling research such as theoretical inquires or historical research. In most cases, media related news obtains information from archival research, which is presumed as the safest form of empirical research. Nevertheless, for an article to qualify as media activist-worthy, it is crucial to impart on the synthesis of information presented.

Research Method

Based on the types of research methods, the writer, Gramling, can be deduced to have used a mixed method of research. A mixed-method of research incorporates both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Primarily, the research method is defined as a systematic plan for conducting research (Creswell). For hybrid methods, also known as mixed methods, they incorporate qualitative and quantitative methods as a means of explaining from an empirical perspective, the philosophical meaning of a concept or occurrence. For instance, Gramling’s article expounds on the climatic change concepts alongside what students around the world are doing about it. The quantitative method is defined as the investigative phenomenon of gathering quantifiable information, whereas, the qualitative method is the method of using non-numerical information to find meaning or characteristic of a phenomenon (Creswell). Therefore, this section divulges in the evaluation of the mixed methods used in the article.

The article focuses primarily on the qualitative analysis of information. Gramling utilizes information relating to climate change. From the beginning of the article, Gramling uses terms such as ‘scorcher’ and ‘summer temperatures.’ For an article to be reader worthy, there is the element of ensuring that the audience is captivated. To begin with, a qualitative aspect is what the article achieved. Throughout the article, it is evident that the writer achieved asynchrony of both quantitative and qualitative information; however, qualitative information was more obvious compared to quantitative information. The field of social sciences advocates for the introduction of information with more subtle detail in order to make the audience more aware of what the article entails (Creswell). In the article, for instance, the writer states, “But climate scientists say that not 2019’s takeaway: this year also saw record-breaking waves of climate activism.” Therefore, it is true to indicate that the article focuses on using qualitative information as a means to educate the reader on what climate change is about.

Similarly, the article uses a quantitative method. A quantitative method, as described earlier, entails the use of data-backed information. Throughout the article, Gramling utilizes data as a means of enhancing the information that the writer is conveying. For instance,  “She says she will protest until her government agrees to reduce carbon emission by 15% each year, achieving carbon neutrality within just a decade or so” (Gramling). Another instance is “…with the September Climate Action Summit, with a record-breaking 7.6 million people participating in a global climate strike” (Gramling). The emphasis on the number of quite clear on the article a Gramling reiterates on the growing number of people who are engaging in the campaign against climate change around the world. Creswell dictates that the use of a quantitative method is an assured process of providing factual back-up to the information that is being presented. It not only fortifies an article, but it also provides a detailed, quantifiable account that readers need, thus qualifying the article as an activist paper. In summary, the article has utilized quantitative data in little detail but, the positioning of such information has pieced together the article in a more consistent and convincing manner.

Another research method that has been used within the article is theme generalization. Theme generalization is defined as the statement or information that builds up to a universal theme (Creswell). In this case, the article has focused primarily on climate change alongside student campaigns. For instance, “From May to August, nearly 400 all-time high-temperature records were set in 29 countries in the Northern Hemisphere” (Gramling). The purpose of theme generalization is proven to be true most of the time. Based on the writer, Gramling, it is evident that the conceptualization of climate change is proven with factual background on how bad the situation has been all over the world (Gramling). The purpose of the theme generalization method is to create an idea with deeper understanding in order to give meaning to a concept. Based on the article, Gramling presents a clear understanding of the concept of climate change and expounds on why students are vocal about it. For example, the writer indicates, “of course, this year’s dramatic and record-smashing heat waves likely added urgency to the protests” (Gramling). The emphasis on specific points about climate change has been evident throughout the paper. In addition to quantifying the statistics alongside the qualitative information, Gramling has been able to provide a detailed account of the theoretical generalization about climate change by explaining its demerit and caution of radicalization against it. Therefore, the research method on generalization has been extensively used throughout the article.

Summary

The above essay has provided a detailed discussion on media activism with an in-depth analysis of research methods. The article under investigation has proven a good source for analysis. As a result, three research methods have been identified, including mixed methods and theoretical generalizations. Additionally, information regarding media activism has been expounded on with respect to scholars such as Waltz. Therefore, this essay concludes that the article published by Gramling Carolyn is a media activist paper that focuses solely on climate change besides student campaign against it.

Work Cited

Gramling, C. ‘Record-Breaking Heat Amplified Waves of Student Climate Protests.’ Science News. 2020. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/youth-climate-change-activists-heat-waves-top-science-stories-2019-yir

Creswell John.  ‘Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Methods Approaches.’ SAGE publication. 4^th edition. 2014. ISBN-13: 978-1452226101

Waltz, Mitzi. Alternative and activist media. Edinburgh University Press, 2005.