Posting images on the web: the creative viewer and non-violent resistance against terrorism
In this article I investigate how the web was used for expressing non-violent resistance in the wake of the July 2005 bombings in London. I first describe how one website, entitled "We are not afraid," became a space for displaying and viewing responses to these attacks. My contention is t...
| Published in: | Material religion |
|---|---|
| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Taylor & Francis
[2006]
|
| In: |
Material religion
|
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Resolving-System) |
| Summary: | In this article I investigate how the web was used for expressing non-violent resistance in the wake of the July 2005 bombings in London. I first describe how one website, entitled "We are not afraid," became a space for displaying and viewing responses to these attacks. My contention is that, to describe this phenomenon either as the creation of a fully fledged online community or simply as an electronic noticeboard is to oversimplify what is both a fluid and a social network. Indeed, the phenomenon is better described as a diverse collective representation in the face of shared trauma. In order to test this thesis out, I develop a taxonomy of postings showing the uses that these images are put to, including to console, to encourage, to explain and to exhort. Second, I look at the communicative ripples caused by this site, including the development of other sites that accepted the posting of satirical pictures and more explicit religious imagery. Third, I examine written responses to this web phenomenon, showing how these sites became catalysts for further interaction. On the basis of this analysis I make a number of observations, including that this represents a visually dominated, highly original and largely transitory network of resistance against terrorism. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1751-8342 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Material religion
|
| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2752/174322006778053726 |