Analyzing the Information Cascade in the #MeToo Social Movement
https://www.mironline.ca/metoo-hashtag-versus-giant/
This article talks about the #MeToo social movement and how it influenced many men and women who have suffered from sexual assault to speak up about their experiences and call out their offenders. Until recently, many people were unaware of the prolific number of sexual assaults and harassments that have taken place (specifically in Hollywood). However, after one woman shared her story about sexual assault involving a high-power Hollywood executive, many women started to follow this decision and also share their stories. And they did so primarily on social media using the hashtag #MeToo. Facebook even stated that about 4.7 million people participated in the #MeToo conversation on their platform. This social media movement let victims know that they are not alone in their struggles and that there are people who will listen, empathize with, and defend them.
This is relevant to Networks because it shows us how information cascades can propagate over social media. In class we talked about how information cascades happen because people imitate the decisions of others. In this case, the bold decision of one woman to accuse a high-power Hollywood executive influenced many other men and women to share their stories and call out their offenders. Social media played a factor because it allowed the stories of victims to be broadcasted and visible to other victims. Social media also allowed people to show support and defense for the victims. Thus, men and women used these stories and signs of support when making their own decisions to share their stories and call out their offenders.