Examining the success of digital anonymous communication: the case of the Catalan democratic tsunami

Rovira Munté, Júlia

Examining the success of digital anonymous communication: the case of the Catalan democratic tsunami

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Citation

Rovira Munté, J. Examining the success of digital anonymous communication: the case of the Catalan democratic tsunami. 2024. handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10230/68811

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Abstract

The tensions between Catalonia and Spain reached their climax in October 2019, as the verdict on the illegally conducted 2017 Catalan independence referendum was made public. During those weeks, a new online movement emerged: the Democratic Tsunami. Using Telegram and a bespoke mobile app, this mysterious formation was successful in the mobilisation of thousands in various urban protests. No one knew who was the source of the information, yet trust was put in them as leaders. This research paper aims to explore the use of anonymous communication by the Democratic Tsunami during the 2019 Barcelona airport occupation. Providing a theoretical framework based on constructivism, it will review the existing literature on anonymity and the recent changes in social movements due to technological advancements. It will then, following the proposed methodology, conduct 10 semi-structured interviews with protest participants in order to submit the collected data to a six-phase thematic analysis to answer the study’s research inquiries: (1) To what extent do Democratic Tsunami’s protesters think that anonymous communication was a successful tool for their recruitment in 2019, (2) To what degree do protesters think that communication strategies used by Catalan Secessionist traditional organisations are less effective than the ones used by newer digital networks like the Democratic Tsunami, and (3) Do protesters feel that anonymous communication can be a viable option for establishing long-term activist movement networks. This project explores two important topics, on a local level, it examines an anomaly in the Catalan secessionist collective action by taking the Democratic Tsunami as its case study. On the other hand, in a general manner, it continues the study of digital anonymous communication as a means used for activism, protesting, and social movements’ organisation.