The Weapon of Digital Silence: Resistance and Courage in the Struggle for Palestine
(2025) SOCM05 20242Sociology
- Abstract
- This thesis focuses on how online activists react to online censorship imposed onto them by social media platforms and how the reactions shape the activists’ responses to the censorship. It does so by deploying a qualitative interview study design onto how Swedish individuals who advocate for Palestine online experience and respond to digital censorship on Meta’s social media platforms.
In the study, censorship is shown to both suppress and inspire resistance, as activists adapt to and challenge the structures that aim to silence them. More specifically, the results of the study show that the nature of the censorship, as it is experienced by the activists, is technical, with algorithms limiting content, and administrative, with... (More) - This thesis focuses on how online activists react to online censorship imposed onto them by social media platforms and how the reactions shape the activists’ responses to the censorship. It does so by deploying a qualitative interview study design onto how Swedish individuals who advocate for Palestine online experience and respond to digital censorship on Meta’s social media platforms.
In the study, censorship is shown to both suppress and inspire resistance, as activists adapt to and challenge the structures that aim to silence them. More specifically, the results of the study show that the nature of the censorship, as it is experienced by the activists, is technical, with algorithms limiting content, and administrative, with arbitrary guidelines stifling expression. The results also show that to counteract the censorship, the activists employ several strategies. These include the use of coded language, symbolic gestures, and reliance on alternative platforms or informal networks. Additionally, the results indicate that censorship takes a significant emotional toll on the activist and that the feelings —ranging from frustration and anger to sadness—often drive stronger engagement and solidarity.
The findings emphasize the importance of understanding the nature of online censorship, the type of emotions the censorship triggers and how the emotions relate to individual strategies for navigating censorship that amounts to ‘everyday online resistance’ of attacks on the freedom of speech. The study calls for further empirical research to examine this relationship and contribute to its conceptualization and inquiries into the broader implications of everyday online resistance on democratic values and activism in digital spaces. (Less) - Popular Abstract (Swedish)
- Denna studie fokuserar på hur online-aktivister reagerar på den censur som påtvingas dem av sociala medieplattformar och hur dessa reaktioner formar deras svar på censuren. Studien genomförs genom en kvalitativ intervjustudie av hur svenska individer som förespråkar Palestina online upplever och hanterar digital censur på Metas sociala medieplattformar.
Studien visar att censur både undertrycker och inspirerar motstånd, då aktivister anpassar sig till och utmanar de strukturer som syftar till att tysta dem. Mer specifikt visar resultaten att den censur aktivisterna upplever är både teknisk, där algoritmer begränsar innehåll, och administrativ, där godtyckliga riktlinjer inskränker yttrandefriheten. Resultaten visar också att... (More) - Denna studie fokuserar på hur online-aktivister reagerar på den censur som påtvingas dem av sociala medieplattformar och hur dessa reaktioner formar deras svar på censuren. Studien genomförs genom en kvalitativ intervjustudie av hur svenska individer som förespråkar Palestina online upplever och hanterar digital censur på Metas sociala medieplattformar.
Studien visar att censur både undertrycker och inspirerar motstånd, då aktivister anpassar sig till och utmanar de strukturer som syftar till att tysta dem. Mer specifikt visar resultaten att den censur aktivisterna upplever är både teknisk, där algoritmer begränsar innehåll, och administrativ, där godtyckliga riktlinjer inskränker yttrandefriheten. Resultaten visar också att aktivisterna använder flera strategier för att motverka censuren. Dessa inkluderar användning av kodade språk, symboliska gester samt en ökad tillit till alternativa plattformar eller informella nätverk. Dessutom indikerar resultaten att censuren har en betydande emotionell påverkan på aktivisterna, där känslor – från frustration och ilska till sorg – ofta leder till ett starkare engagemang och ökad solidaritet.
Studien betonar vikten av att förstå online-censurens natur, de känslor den väcker och hur dessa känslor hänger samman med individuella strategier för att hantera censuren, vilket i praktiken utgör en form av "vardagligt online-motstånd" mot inskränkningar av yttrandefriheten. Studien efterlyser vidare empirisk forskning för att undersöka denna relation samt bidra till dess begreppsliggörande och till studier av de bredare konsekvenserna av vardagligt online-motstånd för demokratiska värderingar och aktivism i digitala miljöer. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9184439
- author
- Al-Walli, Ali LU
- supervisor
- organization
- alternative title
- A Study of Digital Censorship, Subtle Resistance, and Solidarity Strategies Among Swedish Voices for Palestine
- course
- SOCM05 20242
- year
- 2025
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- keywords
- Online censorship, Freedom of Expression, Social media, Palestine, Everyday Resistance
- language
- English
- id
- 9184439
- date added to LUP
- 2025-02-10 09:22:37
- date last changed
- 2025-02-12 11:22:21
@misc{9184439,
abstract = {{This thesis focuses on how online activists react to online censorship imposed onto them by social media platforms and how the reactions shape the activists’ responses to the censorship. It does so by deploying a qualitative interview study design onto how Swedish individuals who advocate for Palestine online experience and respond to digital censorship on Meta’s social media platforms.
In the study, censorship is shown to both suppress and inspire resistance, as activists adapt to and challenge the structures that aim to silence them. More specifically, the results of the study show that the nature of the censorship, as it is experienced by the activists, is technical, with algorithms limiting content, and administrative, with arbitrary guidelines stifling expression. The results also show that to counteract the censorship, the activists employ several strategies. These include the use of coded language, symbolic gestures, and reliance on alternative platforms or informal networks. Additionally, the results indicate that censorship takes a significant emotional toll on the activist and that the feelings —ranging from frustration and anger to sadness—often drive stronger engagement and solidarity.
The findings emphasize the importance of understanding the nature of online censorship, the type of emotions the censorship triggers and how the emotions relate to individual strategies for navigating censorship that amounts to ‘everyday online resistance’ of attacks on the freedom of speech. The study calls for further empirical research to examine this relationship and contribute to its conceptualization and inquiries into the broader implications of everyday online resistance on democratic values and activism in digital spaces.}},
author = {{Al-Walli, Ali}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{The Weapon of Digital Silence: Resistance and Courage in the Struggle for Palestine}},
year = {{2025}},
}