.

In the months to come, I am sure there will be ample analysis of the role that social media played in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests. However, what follows here is a view of what it has meant for me, as someone born and raised in Hong Kong but now living in London.

Social media has helped me feel, at least to a minor degree, a part of the movement surrounding my friends, family, and compatriots at home. It has also given me the variety of perspectives, and the human, anecdotal information I need to understand why the people of Hong Kong took to the streets in such great numbers—an understanding I could not reach by reading only Western reportage.

What Spurred the Protests

Media reports have identified numerous factors that have led to these protests, but the core demand of the protesters is for universal suffrage to decide who takes on Hong Kong’s top political role. What triggered these protests was a Beijing proposal announced on 29 August that would render it impossible for any anti-Chinese Communist Party candidate to run for office, reneging on what protesters believe were vows made by the Chinese leadership as part of the agreement between China and the UK when the handover was formalised, to give Hong Kong people genuine democracy.

Social Versus “Traditional” Media

I have been avidly following this story in the UK press since 29 August, and some of the articles have made me realise the limitations of “traditional” reportage.

First, I felt that many articles, particularly those published in the early days of the protests, gave me the facts, but not the whole picture. Although my own experiences of Hong Kong tell me that the city has a strong political infrastructure and pro-democracy movement, I would never have thought that people would take to the streets in such great numbers regarding the issue of universal suffrage. When I expressed this confusion on Facebook, a Hong Kong school friend responded to suggest that for some, the protests have more to do with issues such as the floods of people moving to Hong Kong from China in the years after the Handover, squeezing local resources.

A comment on Twitter helped me identify my second area of dissatisfaction: “Most of the commentary on Hong Kong has been cliché-ridden drivel,” tweeted one. Although I would not describe the reporting in such strong words, I do feel that there is a grain of truth to this. A lot of Western reporting has been too quick to take statements by the Chinese authorities out of context, and too keen to show mainland authorities in the worse possible light.

Because I have my own preconceived ideas about Hong Kong, I have found myself searching for articles that can encapsulate a more nuanced situation on the ground. Given word limits, and the agendas of some media outlets, I have come to realise that it is difficult to find any one article that can capture this. Only by trawling through all the images tagged with #HongKong over the past few days have I been able to come to an impression of what the protests have been like, in a way that rings true for me.

Being with the Protesters 10,000 km Away

However, what I am most grateful for is the way in which technology has let me feel a part of the protests, from London. Last week, I watched as the Facebook profile photos of my school friends now scattered around the globe gradually turn into black rectangles, illuminated only by an eerie bright yellow folded ribbon, to symbolise Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. Now, my Facebook News Feed is filled with Hong Kong friends expressing their views about the protests (both for and against), and because I too contribute, we are having conversations about what is happening, just as we would be in Hong Kong, on the streets, and in cafes across the city.

The protests and the social media activity around them have also created a global movement, impacting even those without Hong Kong connections. Friends have contacted me, keen to find out more, having seen so many mentions of the protests in the media and online. Similarly, people have taken to the streets of cities such as London, Taiwan, and New York in support of the movement. Furthermore, in one tweet, a girl on the streets of Hong Kong mentioned that she felt encouraged by the messages of support she has received from people abroad.

The more light-hearted photos of the protests being shared on Twitter and Instagram have also helped me see the Hong Kong I know and love behind the news stories: ever-conscientious students doing their homework on the streets; protesters separating their litter so it is recycled; and the Hong Kong humility displayed in images of protesters holding umbrellas over the heads of the watching police, to protect them from recent heavy rains.

So, although social media may have been credited with helping to fuel the Arab Spring by making people aware that they were not alone in their views, in the open society of Hong Kong, the medium has been less about spurring people to action, and more about telling the real story. In addition, the prevalence of smart phones and their cameras have provided real-time global updates of the situation on the ground is likely to have played a role in keeping the protests calm for the majority of their duration. Finally, social media has provided displaced “Hong Kongers” such as myself—and other interested parties—a much more realistic understanding of what is happening 10,000 kilometres away, and to feel some of the same sentiment as those in the city.

Jenny Runnacles is a consultant at APCO Worldwide in London. The views in this post offer her personal perspective.

Photo: alcuin lai (cc).

The views presented in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the views of any other organization.

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The Role of Social Media in the Hong Kong Protests

October 8, 2014

In the months to come, I am sure there will be ample analysis of the role that social media played in Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests. However, what follows here is a view of what it has meant for me, as someone born and raised in Hong Kong but now living in London.

Social media has helped me feel, at least to a minor degree, a part of the movement surrounding my friends, family, and compatriots at home. It has also given me the variety of perspectives, and the human, anecdotal information I need to understand why the people of Hong Kong took to the streets in such great numbers—an understanding I could not reach by reading only Western reportage.

What Spurred the Protests

Media reports have identified numerous factors that have led to these protests, but the core demand of the protesters is for universal suffrage to decide who takes on Hong Kong’s top political role. What triggered these protests was a Beijing proposal announced on 29 August that would render it impossible for any anti-Chinese Communist Party candidate to run for office, reneging on what protesters believe were vows made by the Chinese leadership as part of the agreement between China and the UK when the handover was formalised, to give Hong Kong people genuine democracy.

Social Versus “Traditional” Media

I have been avidly following this story in the UK press since 29 August, and some of the articles have made me realise the limitations of “traditional” reportage.

First, I felt that many articles, particularly those published in the early days of the protests, gave me the facts, but not the whole picture. Although my own experiences of Hong Kong tell me that the city has a strong political infrastructure and pro-democracy movement, I would never have thought that people would take to the streets in such great numbers regarding the issue of universal suffrage. When I expressed this confusion on Facebook, a Hong Kong school friend responded to suggest that for some, the protests have more to do with issues such as the floods of people moving to Hong Kong from China in the years after the Handover, squeezing local resources.

A comment on Twitter helped me identify my second area of dissatisfaction: “Most of the commentary on Hong Kong has been cliché-ridden drivel,” tweeted one. Although I would not describe the reporting in such strong words, I do feel that there is a grain of truth to this. A lot of Western reporting has been too quick to take statements by the Chinese authorities out of context, and too keen to show mainland authorities in the worse possible light.

Because I have my own preconceived ideas about Hong Kong, I have found myself searching for articles that can encapsulate a more nuanced situation on the ground. Given word limits, and the agendas of some media outlets, I have come to realise that it is difficult to find any one article that can capture this. Only by trawling through all the images tagged with #HongKong over the past few days have I been able to come to an impression of what the protests have been like, in a way that rings true for me.

Being with the Protesters 10,000 km Away

However, what I am most grateful for is the way in which technology has let me feel a part of the protests, from London. Last week, I watched as the Facebook profile photos of my school friends now scattered around the globe gradually turn into black rectangles, illuminated only by an eerie bright yellow folded ribbon, to symbolise Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. Now, my Facebook News Feed is filled with Hong Kong friends expressing their views about the protests (both for and against), and because I too contribute, we are having conversations about what is happening, just as we would be in Hong Kong, on the streets, and in cafes across the city.

The protests and the social media activity around them have also created a global movement, impacting even those without Hong Kong connections. Friends have contacted me, keen to find out more, having seen so many mentions of the protests in the media and online. Similarly, people have taken to the streets of cities such as London, Taiwan, and New York in support of the movement. Furthermore, in one tweet, a girl on the streets of Hong Kong mentioned that she felt encouraged by the messages of support she has received from people abroad.

The more light-hearted photos of the protests being shared on Twitter and Instagram have also helped me see the Hong Kong I know and love behind the news stories: ever-conscientious students doing their homework on the streets; protesters separating their litter so it is recycled; and the Hong Kong humility displayed in images of protesters holding umbrellas over the heads of the watching police, to protect them from recent heavy rains.

So, although social media may have been credited with helping to fuel the Arab Spring by making people aware that they were not alone in their views, in the open society of Hong Kong, the medium has been less about spurring people to action, and more about telling the real story. In addition, the prevalence of smart phones and their cameras have provided real-time global updates of the situation on the ground is likely to have played a role in keeping the protests calm for the majority of their duration. Finally, social media has provided displaced “Hong Kongers” such as myself—and other interested parties—a much more realistic understanding of what is happening 10,000 kilometres away, and to feel some of the same sentiment as those in the city.

Jenny Runnacles is a consultant at APCO Worldwide in London. The views in this post offer her personal perspective.

Photo: alcuin lai (cc).

The views presented in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily represent the views of any other organization.