MOBILIZING IN A POST-SOCIAL MEDIA ERA BY PATYT REYES

Over the past two decades, activists and protestors have embraced social media as a tool for resistance, raising awareness, calling for action, and bringing people into the streets. Yet today, algorithmic censorship, shadow banning, and surveillance increasingly undermine these efforts and put movements at risk. This talk examines both the possibilities and limitations of organizing through social media, reflecting on how it has reshaped activism while asking if it’s time to move beyond Big Tech’s control. Together, we’ll explore what a ‘post-social media era’ of mobilization might look like and what steps we can take to start building it now.

Patyt Reyes is a PhD researcher in political philosophy of technology at the University of Twente. Her work focuses on the climate movement and its use of digital tools, with publications on social media, democracy, and the politics of technology. Alongside academia, she is actively involved in ecological and social justice movements, and keeps a critical eye on Instagram (patyt.net).

Time: 12:30 - 13:30