The internet has pushed the reform that occurred in journalism because everyone would have a chance to express his/her opinions, and do something to affect the world. Participatory journalism is one direct appearance. As a result, everyone could be a reporter online. Behind that is what we called online activism, which I believe is some people who play an active role online in response to some significant events that happen around us. Online activism is a very important part of digital leadership because it decides whether you are passively fulfilled by all kind of information and influenced by kind of opinions, or actively share your own valuable thoughts to “lead” others.
So, some people may wonder how much they could change the world from merely behind a keyboard. I would say the power is huge. In China, there is a group of people called keyboard men to appear on the internet that would direct the attitudes of the public towards some specific things, although most of the time what they do is pretty demagogic and violate the truth. However, that at least means that if we choose to, we could do things to make our world a better place as well just behind the keyboard. Thus, by using digital tools, everyone would have a chance to make a difference in the community and the world because digital tools allow everyone’s voice to appear in front of the public, which leads to people who have the same belief to be able to connect together, and then, they could do something bigger.
Let’s start with something small about online activism. In the last semester, due to the pandemic of COVID-19, all courses in my university shifts to online forms, which left huge challenges for both students and instructors. As a result, students have faced unprecedented pressure. That time, some students started a vote to encourage the university to allow the S/N grading basis for every course, and which was a success. The meaning behind that was not only about reducing the pressure but is also a reminder for instructors to adapt to the situation they may never face before as soon as possible.