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ALS Ice Bucket Challenge
In the year 2014, all social media feeds and timelines suddenly became drenched (literally) in these videos. The idea of drenching oneself in freezing water and posting it to the internet for a good cause has been around for awhile, but in the summer of 2014 athlete Pete Frates was credited with the start of this ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Within even a month or so, website visitors increased to over 43 million viewers and had an 849% increase on Facebook, which helped awareness tremendously. -
2016 Presidential Election
In the wake of the 2016 Presidential election, social media was a prevalent factor in how individuals chose to vote. Many are familiar with the Cambridge Analytica scandal, wherein a large data analytics company targeted voters and used internal creative assets to target these individuals with, which would ultimately affect the results of the election. It was reported that during the 2016 election, Trump had an ad spend budget of over $12 million, while Clinton's was only $3 million. -
"#MeToo"
The simple phrase and hashtag "MeToo" was tweeted by actress Alyssa Milano in October 2017, and the post caused a tsunami that followed of individuals coming out with their own stories of sexual harassment and abuse. Just from this one tweet and hashtag, a whole cultural revolution has come about, and individuals from all around the world have come together in support of one another to rally for change in this issue. -
Shift in Voter Age
For the past decade or so, there has been an exponential increase in concern of the fact that the majority of US voters have been older citizens. Because of this, younger individuals and even politicians in support took to social media to raise awareness about young voters in our country doing their part when it comes to voting. Since the raise in awareness, there has been a dramatic shift in the majority voters' ages; in November of 2018 during midterm elections, 31% of voters were aged 18-29. -
Parkland & Gun Law Change
After the tragic Parkland shooting last year in 2018, the youth who were affected took to social media for change. After relentless posting and educating the public about the realities of the changes needed in Florida's gun laws, they were successful in bringing about change solely because of the wave they created on social media.
