Mundane Participation: Power Imbalances in Youth Media Use

Abstract

This study aims at revisiting the notion of participatory culture at a time when social media use is deemed even more central and hence mundane in our everyday lives. Through 10 focus group interviews with 67 secondary students in Hong Kong, the study focuses on the experiences of a generation of young people who are generally savvy social media users, yet facing immense uncertainties brought by political and social changes in recent years. The research analyzed participation through a framework proposed by Carpentier, which considered various factors in participatory processes. It was found that the high hopes for more civic and democratic participation in digital media remained unfulfilled. On the contrary, our findings showed consistent passive participation in youths’ media use, which greatly benefited platforms and media organizations in maintaining “an architecture of passive participation.” The young knew about these mechanisms but there was little resentment or resistance. Despite the remarkable power imbalances in their everyday media participation, the young users were not only indifferent but showed tendencies to practice self-surveillance through passive participation and active non-participation.