Social Media Sent Komen To Timeout
This week’s dramatic conflict (and who are we kidding? Probably next week’s, too) between Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Planned Parenthood has reverberated across the country. People who may not have known much about EITHER nonprofit have learned more than they thought they could know about funding decisions, program budgets, staffing gaffes, and political arm-wrestling.
The outcry on social media forums appears to have had a huge effect on Komen’s decision to restore funding to Planned Parenthood. People who might otherwise have never heard about the nonprofit standoff were posting and tweeting like mad over the course of just a few days. Yesterday’s Nonprofit Quarterly article takes a hard look at the backlash against Komen on social media sites, and compares it to other waves of online activism that have been emerging recently, fueled in part by social media.
Online activism has been a major question for the nonprofit industry – the internet is still not a particularly large fundraising forum, but it IS a way to get your message out. And questions have abounded – do you want people to just click a button and “like” your message? Is that enough? Or are we fostering something that’s been branded “slacktivism,” where you FEEL like you’ve done your share, so you don’t do any more than re-post a message?
Last week’s surge of support for Planned Parenthood may be ushering in a new era for online activism. If the web still isn’t a great way to fundraise your annual budget, it appears it may have a future as a great way to holler “HELP US!” in an emergency. This article takes a look at how social media is redefining what it means to be an activist, including the fact that “slacktivism,” – or very loose ties to a cause you don’t do more for than click on – might just be the first step in the evolution of a new generation of activism. This Chronicle of Philanthropy article argues that websites like Facebook and Twitter CAN spark real change, but only if you have a goal, are selective in your targets, and make social media a priority that doesn’t just get delegated to an intern.
Chalk one up on the side of online activism this week. You didn’t have to do very much to be a part of a major change. Now what’s next?
