Mapping Diasporic Discourses on Social Media

• In Event: 4142 - Methodological and Empirical Advances in Global and Transnational Sociology

Abstract

Social media have become a prominent space for diasporic mobilization and activism, which opens new avenues for studying transnational communities living outside of their countries of origin. Unlike entities with clear geographical boundaries, diasporas are deterritorialized social formations – they emerge in situ, by mobilizing around a cause or a group identity. Diasporas are transglocal actors – networked publics that strategically use digital communication affordances to mobilize around issues of local, global, and transnational importance. A wealth of textual and visual data, produced in the process of mediated communication in those groups, turn social media into an empirical site of studying transnational diasporic communication. This study offers insights on mapping and analyzing diasporic discourse on social media. Below, I lay out a series of steps that lead to the construction of semantic maps – graphic representations of online discourse that allow researchers to extract meaning from large volumes of textual data. This networked approach to text mining allows to map the topical composition of conversations within diaspora networks, shedding light on the levels and contexts of diasporic engagement. Visualizing semantic structure of mediated communication among diaspora formations thus provides key insights for understanding issues and identities that drive diasporic mobilization in the digital age. Adding to the literature on methodological advances in transnational sociology, I conclude with discussion of challenges and limitations of mapping diasporic discourse.

Author

• Olga Boichak, Syracuse University