debate-topic Emerged 2010s
The idea that recommendation systems push users toward more extreme views.
Key Framing: Concerns that platform algorithms prioritize engagement over healthy discourse, leading users down extremist pathways
Platforms: YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Reddit
Related Movements: Tech accountability advocacy, Algorithm transparency campaigns, Digital wellness movements
cultural-frame Emerged 2010s
Online shaming and accountability battles that polarized discourse around speech and power.
Key Framing: Contested concept involving public accountability for speech or behavior versus suppression of legitimate discourse and disproportionate punishment
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok
Related Movements: #MeToo, Social justice activism, Anti-cancel culture movements, Academic freedom advocacy
cultural-frame Emerged 1990s
From 9/11 "truthers" to QAnon, the internet supercharged their spread and influence.
Key Framing: Alternative explanations for major events that challenge official narratives, often involving secretive powerful groups
Platforms: YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, 4chan, 8chan, Telegram
Related Movements: 9/11 Truth movement, QAnon, Anti-vaccine movements, Election fraud claims
political-theory Emerged 2000s
The use of hashtags, livestreams, and online organizing to build movements (#BlackLivesMatter,
Key Framing: Political mobilization through digital tools and platforms to organize, amplify, and coordinate social movements
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, WhatsApp, Telegram
Related Movements: Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, Climate activism, LGBTQ+ rights, Immigration rights
political-theory Emerged 2010s
Concept that controlling information flows online is essential to national security and global power projection
Key Framing: Framed as national security imperative requiring state control over digital information ecosystems to protect democratic processes and geopolitical interests
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Telegram, WhatsApp
Related Movements: Stop the Steal, QAnon, The Resistance
debate-topic Emerged 2000s
Central debate over platform moderation, cancel culture, and constitutional rights online.
Key Framing: Tensions between protecting free expression and preventing harm, with competing interpretations of First Amendment principles in digital spaces
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Parler, Substack
Related Movements: Free speech advocacy, Anti-censorship movements, Platform accountability campaigns
political-theory Emerged 1990s
Online debates framing open borders, trade, and culture against sovereignty and protectionism.
Key Framing: Competing visions of political organization between international cooperation and integration versus national sovereignty and self-determination
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Telegram, Gab
Related Movements: America First, Anti-globalization movements, Nationalist parties, International cooperation advocates
cultural-frame Emerged 2000s
Organizing and conflict around race, gender, sexuality, and culture, amplified by online communities.
Key Framing: Political mobilization based on shared identity characteristics and experiences of discrimination or marginalization
Platforms: Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, TikTok, Reddit
Related Movements: Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, LGBTQ+ rights, Anti-identity politics movements
political-theory Emerged 2000s
The strategic use of memes to spread ideology, satire, or disinformation at scale.
Key Framing: Information warfare through viral content designed to influence political opinions, mock opponents, or spread specific narratives
Platforms: 4chan, Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok
Related Movements: Alt-right, Online leftist communities, Political campaigns, State-sponsored influence operations
debate-topic Emerged 2010s
Central debate about whether tech companies should act as neutral platforms or active content gatekeepers.
Key Framing: Framed around Section 230 protections, free speech principles, and corporate accountability for harmful content
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Reddit, Telegram
Related Movements: Stop the Steal, QAnon, #MeToo, Black Lives Matter
debate-topic Emerged 2000s
The fragmentation of political discourse into self-reinforcing communities.
Key Framing: Concerns about increasing political division amplified by online environments that reinforce existing beliefs while limiting exposure to opposing viewpoints
Platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, Telegram
Related Movements: Bridge-building initiatives, Depolarization efforts, Media diversity campaigns, Cross-partisan dialogue projects
cultural-frame Emerged 1990s
A contested concept regarding language and behavioral norms designed to avoid offense, which became a central battleground in digital political discourse.
Key Framing: Often framed as either necessary respect for marginalized groups or as censorship and thought policing
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Reddit, 4chan, TikTok, Substack
Related Movements: Alt-right, MAGA, #MeToo, Black Lives Matter, Anti-woke
economic-concept Emerged 2000s
The strategic use of divisive content by digital media platforms and outlets to maximize engagement, ad revenue, and subscriber growth.
Key Framing: Outrage-driven content generates higher engagement metrics, making division profitable for digital media companies
Platforms: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, Substack, Fox News Digital, CNN Digital, MSNBC
Related Movements: Media Reform, Tech Accountability
political-theory Emerged 1990s
The claim to represent "the people" against elites, spanning both left and right digital movements.
Key Framing: Appeals to ordinary citizens versus corrupt establishments, political insiders, or special interests
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok
Related Movements: Tea Party, Occupy Wall Street, MAGA, Bernie Sanders movement
cultural-frame Emerged 2010s
A media environment where facts compete with feelings, narratives, and disinformation.
Key Framing: Political discourse characterized by diminished importance of objective facts relative to emotional appeals and narrative consistency
Platforms: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, WhatsApp, Telegram
Related Movements: Fact-checking initiatives, Media literacy campaigns, Alternative media ecosystems, Disinformation research
cultural-frame Emerged 2010s
A conspiracy theory claiming demographic changes are orchestrated by elites to replace existing populations, extensively promoted through digital platforms and linked to extremist violence.
Key Framing: Typically framed as elite manipulation of immigration and demographics to undermine traditional populations and political power structures
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, 4chan, 8chan, Telegram, Gab, Reddit
Related Movements: Alt-right, MAGA, QAnon
debate-topic Emerged 2000s
Growing awareness of state and corporate monitoring (Patriot Act, Snowden, Cambridge Analytica).
Key Framing: Tensions between security needs and privacy rights, with digital technologies enabling unprecedented surveillance capabilities
Platforms: Facebook, Google, Twitter, TikTok, WhatsApp
Related Movements: Privacy rights advocacy, Digital rights organizations, Anti-surveillance activism, Encryption advocacy
cultural-frame Emerged 2010s
Criticism of performative activism and moral posturing on social media platforms, central to debates about authenticity in digital political discourse.
Key Framing: Typically framed as insincere public displays of moral values for social approval rather than genuine commitment to causes
Platforms: Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, Instagram, TikTok
Related Movements: Cancel Culture, Culture War