Sexual assault or ‘just a bad date’? #MeToo and conceptualisations of sexual violence in the Twitter discussion of the allegations against Aziz Ansari

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ABSTRACT The article explores the tensions between ‘common-sense’ and ‘continuum’ conceptualisations of sexual violence in public discourse during the height of the #MeToo social media movement in 2017. A particularly salient case study for analysis is identified in the publication of sexual assault allegations against actors Aziz Ansari on the website Babe.net in January 2018. This story proved especially controversial and sparked a public debate on the role of consent in everyday settings and the boundaries of what constitutes sexual violence. A thematic analysis of a sample of tweets discussing the case is carried out to explore how individuals understand the gendered and sexual dynamics of the encounter described in the story; the role played by gender and race in their interpretations; and how they position the case in relation to the #MeToo movement. The article finds that, despite the challenge posed by #MeToo to dominant notions of sexual violence, tensions continue to exist between ‘common-sense’ and ‘continuum’ definitions of sexual violence. This is evidenced by different interpretations of the events involving Ansari, the reliance on gendered and racialised tropes, and the complexity of using social media platforms for feminist activism.