"Where's the Outrage??": An Analysis of #BlackLivesMatter and #BlackTransLivesMatter Twitter Counterpublics. (September 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Dunklin, Macy; Jennings, Paige
• Is Part Of: Journalism & mass communication quarterly. Volume 99:Number 3(2022)
• Page Start: 763
• Page End: 783
• Publication Date: 2022-09
• Subjects: Twitter -- transgender -- satellite publics -- counterpublics -- semantic network analysis; Journalism -- Periodicals; Mass media -- Periodicals; Communication -- Periodicals; Journalism -- United States -- Periodicals; Journalism -- Bibliography -- Periodicals; 070
• DOI: 10.1177/10776990221109236
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1077-6990

Abstract

Twitter activism is a powerful tool for #BlackLivesMatter, but #BlackTransLivesMatter has not seen the same success. This study examined tweets collected during 1 week in May 2020 that encompassed the deaths of George Floyd, a cisgender Black male, and Tony McDade, a transgender Black male. Using a mixed-methods approach, we analyzed semantic networks and conducted a critical discourse analysis to determine how satellite publics function within activism discourse. We found a disconnect between the discussions that a separate network, bridge tweets, filled by constructing a discourse between the two networks that focused on lack of education about trans issues.