Activism, transmedia storytelling and empowerment

This work explores activism through new media by applying narrative power analysis and story-based strategies for social change. From an interdisciplinary and internationally discussed theoretical and methodological framework based on peace research, communication theories and cultural studies, this paper aims at gathering a series of criteria to critically analyze and assess the new media politics of social movements. Specifically, it reviews a selection of present day activist discourses to propose a communication model defined from culturally effective practices aimed at peace cultures, cultural wisdom and empowerment for conflict transformation. This analysis elaborates on previous empirical research (Pinazo and Nos Aldás, 2013) which tested protest communication scenarios as the more adequate to boost social justice, engagement and empowerment. This text therefore takes as a case study some good practices of transmedia storytelling for social change and, through discourse framing analysis, it develops on how activist empowering frames, values and emotions of social change for social justice are an effective cultural alternative to hegemonic negative frames. All in all, this paper intends to further advance conclusions on new media politics for social justice from the experience of new social movements communicative scenarios of social empowerment through transmedia storytelling