Learning by clicking: An experiment with social media democracy in Indonesia

Abstract

This article revisits the current interplay between the government, the market, civil society, and the media in contemporary Indonesian political communication. Previous research showed a striking increase in the numbers of both Internet and social media users as well as cases of social media influence on the democratization process. Some scholars have pointed out the limitations of social media, such as the simplified narratives, larger media systems, and dominant meta-narratives. This includes the ‘many clicks, little sticks’ phenomenon, meaning that only a few of the many clicks resulted in widespread activism in the vast social media environment. This article includes more recent and nuanced interpretations from the various actors. The activists have continued their experiments—providing two-way information, encouraging rapid interaction, creating much participation, and expanding role decentralization. In a ‘network of networks’ spirit they have been doing a lot of clicking, and learning a lot in the process.