Digital movements

The role of social media in the development of contemporary social movements, such as the 'Arab spring' or the Indignados, has been decisive. Social media are useful instruments to coordinate national and international actions, and they have become essential to keep up with the latest news about different movements.
Nevertheless, we should take a step back from the focus on social media and think about it as yet another available tool in the development of social movements. While Castells (2009) states that recent technological changes have allowed new actors to enter the global network society, other authors argue that we need to pay attention to the physical and emotional aspects of social movements. Collins (2001), for instance, points out that the level of critical mass involved in social movements depends on emotional dynamics, and that it is in the physical assembly of people where a sense of collective awareness develops.

After all, the digital divide is still a reality and, as activists involved in the 15M actions in 2011 point out, the initial web-based operation turned into a vast street-based campaign which included the use of posters, debates and word of mouth (Gerbaudo, 2012: 89). The need to become visible in the streets came from the fact that millions of citizens are still cut off from the online campaigns carried out on social media.