Social Activism through Computer Networks

As new communication technologies have taken hold and spread throughout societies, there has been constant debate about the positive and negative effects of these technologies on our social and political systems. A multitude of relationships between the dissemination of computer technology and various social variables have been proposed and examined. Educational systems and opportunities, work activities, and privacy rights are only a few societal characteristics that have been touched by computer technology.

      Of particular interest to many social scientists is how new technologies affect inequality in society. In general, these scholars observe superior access to new technologies by those in higher socioeconomic positions. Inequality of access to technology, in turn leads to more social privilege, thus widening the socioeconomic gap between the information rich and the information poor. ¹ The modern effects of computer access on inequality reflect the concerns of earlier elite theorists who felt that professionalism and privileged access to information were key elements in increasing concentration of power in the hands of a few powerful elites.

      In contrast to the elite theorists, pluralists argued that power was becoming less centralized. Pluralists saw advances in technology as providing the potential for greater democratization and increased participation in political processes. ² Some scholars have begun to observe growing attempts to use new communication technology, especially computer technology, in the interests of the less affluent. ³ In particular, as social movement activists have become more sophisticated computer users, some of the resources once monopolized by the "establishment" are being used to improve communication between activists. ⁴ Activists throughout the world now use their access to established networks, via the Internet and Usenet, as well as specialized networks such as Peacenet and Econet, to communicate about social movement activities and to form collective action agendas.

      The range of activity in these networks is well suited to examining a number of practical and theoretical questions about social movements and the contributions of communication technology to social change. How do activists use computer-assisted communication? Does new communication technology change the way social movements are born, rise, and fall? How are dissemination patterns for both information and collective action changed by changing technology? Can computerized communication arenas provide access to information about the social movement process that has been inaccessible until now? Most importantly, can the information recorded in these forums facilitate competitive tests among contending theories of social movements and collective action?

      Consider the two dominant theoretical perspectives regarding social movements and collective behavior: Resource mobilization, the dominant paradigm guiding social movement research throughout the 1970s and into the 1980s, and the more recently developed new social movement theory. Resource mobilization abandoned earlier psychological approaches to collective action and introduced resources, organizing, and rationality as the key variables explaining the emergence of social movements and collective action. ⁵ Despite the attractiveness of resource mobilization and its proven utility to social movement scholars, important aspects of social movements remain unexplained by resource mobilization theory. The result has been the rise of new social movement theory, which emphasizes social psychological processes, collective identity, and continuity as complements to the manipulation of resources described in resource mobilization theory. ⁶

      Recent debates in the field stem from the intersection of these two perspectives; therefore, the issues related to computer-assisted communication outlined in this chapter are drawn directly from both resource mobilization and new social movement theory. Not only can the researcher use data from activist computer use to examine resource mobilization processes, such as attempts to gather and allocate collective resources, plan strategies, and perpetuate the movement, but she or he can also observe processes related to the formation of collective identities and solidarity.

      Despite its potential, computer-assisted communication has not been investigated systematically as a contributor to social movements and collective behavior. Nevertheless, there appears to be a burgeoning interest in the role of computer networks in activism; ⁷ therefore, the purpose of this chapter is to outline key issues in need of investigation that could shed light on the role of technology and communication in social movements and inform theoretical debates in the field of social movement scholarship.

Computer Structures for Activism

Social movement activists use computers to communicate with other activists in several complementary ways. These methods range from the unorganized and individualistic use of electronic mail to systems professionally organized specifically to nurture activism. The most informal method involves the personal use of electronic mail. Activists send items of interest to friends, colleagues, and fellow activists, who may be spurred by the message to act. In addition to acting themselves, people who receive the message can to forward it to acquaintances. The result is an effective information network defined by personal ties and powered by electronic mail forwarding. Using this method, activists can relay messages to thousands of like-minded computer users in a very short time.

      A related method also takes advantage of electronic mail technology. In this case an organization or individual sets up a clearinghouse for information related to a particular movement. People then send information relevant to their movement to the clearinghouse address. Interested people subscribe to the clearinghouse service, which upon receipt of a contribution automatically sends an electronic mail message to all its subscribers containing the text of the contribution. These listservs are a very efficient way for activists to send information to hundreds or even thousands of activists whom they have never met. After the message is sent through the clearinghouse service, the personal message forwarding process takes over as activists forward to their acquaintances all or part of the information they have received. The clearinghouse method takes more organization and sustained commitment because activists must take responsibility for starting the clearinghouse, maintaining subscription lists, monitoring the content of contributions, and ensuring the proper functioning of the service.

      With the advent and popularization of the World Wide Web, activists and activist organizations have created thousands of home pages that provide information on activist concerns and activities. Web pages are superior to previous modes of electronic communication because they allow people to distribute formatted text and graphics easily. Furthermore, the ease of navigating the Web via point-and-click hypertext links encourages use by activists who are less technically knowledgeable. The Web is more limited, however, with regard to interactivity. Activist Web pages usually consist of static documents that can be updated only by the author, and the technical knowledge necessary to maintain even a low degree of interactivity is beyond most activist users.

      The final method is the most formal of the four and involves computer networks dedicated to activism. The networks may be as small as local bulletin board systems or as large as the international Institute for Global Communications (IGC), which houses thousands of computer "conferences," bulletin boards, and Web pages related to activists' concerns. ⁸ Beyond what is necessary for maintaining a clearinghouse service or individual Web pages, these networks must also purchase and maintain hardware and provide facilities to house the system. Larger systems employ paid staff to maintain equipment and software, solicit users, and perform fiscal accounting functions. Through electronic mail, Web pages, chat functions, and conferences dedicated to specific movement interests, these networks provide to activists—who normally would never meet or communicate with each other—an inexpensive forum for discussing issues, advertising activities, and providing information about the development of social movement organizations. Other computer services (e.g., Microsoft Network (MSN), America Online) also provide conferencing, chat, Web, and electronic mail functions that are used by activists; however, organizations such as IGC are dedicated to activism.

Special Characteristics of Computer-Assisted Communication

Speed and Cost

Computer networking technology changes and enhances the character of social movements in a number of ways. Because it is the collective nature of social movements that separates them from other types of human activity, any technology that changes the collective character of a movement has important ramifications for its processes and effects. Computerized networks alter the nature of social movements mainly through the speed and ease of information transfer. Information can be transmitted to thousands of nodes all over the globe, almost effortlessly and very inexpensively, in minutes or even seconds.

      The speed-to-cost ratio involved in disseminating information is truly an advance over previous systems of communication. After startup investments, information can be sent to thousands of other activists for only a few cents or sometimes even for nothing. Access to computer networking facilities of friends, employers, and universities sometimes makes startup costs negligible as well. College students, for example, routinely co-opt the computing resources of their universities to coordinate protest against the university itself. The time and resources involved in sending a message to thousands of people through the network amount to only a small fraction of what it would take to achieve the same result through the telephone. Similarly, the time and money involved in distributing the same information through the mail—even within one country—would be prohibitive.

      An example of this process occurred in late 1992 when Mattel released a new Barbie doll called "Teen Talk Barbie." These dolls were programmed to say different things that were supposed to be related to being a teenage girl. One sentence the teen Barbie spouted was "Math class is tough." Recognizing that this message reinforced the prevailing socialization of young women to fear math and to feel unable to perform mathematical tasks, an association of scholars mounted a campaign to get Barbie to stop saying "Math class is tough." Part of this attempt was an electronic mail message sent to academics explaining the situation, urging action, and providing names and addresses at the Mattel headquarters. By the time this message reached me, it had been forwarded three times and I was a member of a list of ninety people who received the message. If the message had reached me through a similar pattern of forwarding, it could have reached a maximum of more than 65 million computer sites from just three forwards! Although it is unlikely that each person who received the message forwarded it to ninety people, the point is still clear: The ease of forwarding messages and sending the same message to multiple sites can result in a tremendous dissemination of information in a very short period of time. When traversing international boundaries, the transmission of information via the Internet has even greater cost-related advantages. Recent international coordination of protest against the World Trade Organization is but one striking example.

      The advantages of speed and ease are inextricably connected with the disadvantages of information overload, however. Although information reaches thousands of nodes, the question remains whether the information is digested by the audience or passed over like so much junk mail.

Accuracy

One important asset the computer network has is the accurate replication of information to the thousands of nodes it touches. Because of forwarding capabilities, original messages can travel through many network nodes without the slightest distortion. The result is widespread dissemination without the misinformation that typically results from pass-along methods of information distribution. Given social movements' tendencies to rely on informal networks to distribute information about the grievances and activities of the movement, the computer network is a substantial advance in communication procedures. Social movement campaigns that rely heavily on details such as accurate addresses or phone numbers can expect these details to be distributed more accurately and easily by electronic means than by word of mouth. In the Barbie incident, accurate information about the exact nature of the problem, how to respond, and where to direct responses reached every person who received the message. The result of the Barbie campaign was a promise by Mattel to replace dolls that made the math statement and to volunteer Barbie for promath advertising.

Interactivity

The ability of computers to expand levels of interactivity is one of the key characteristics that change the way social movements use communication technology. Using computers, activists have access to time-shifted interaction, simultaneous interaction, and easy connections to other ideologically aligned people whom they may not know personally. All these interactive characteristics can facilitate the operation of social movements and combine to provide advances on earlier communication methods used by activists.

The Microsocial Roles of Computer Conferencing   One important function of computer conferences such as those that exist on IGC's Peacenet and Econet relates to the microsocial processes that sustain social movements. As many scholars have observed, movements must exploit communication resources to achieve their goals. Communication must be able to "generate sympathy among bystanders" and maintain "legitimacy and efficacy" among movement participants. ⁹ Each of these functions can be observed directly in activist conferences. In fact, these two functions often are the main activity in movement-related computer-assisted dialogue. One conference on IGC's Peacenet dedicated to the pursuit of gay and lesbian rights contains many articles reporting developments throughout the world that extend greater rights to the gay and lesbian population. Furthermore, efforts are made to enhance activist efficacy by attributing these changes directly to the action of people within the movement. Amnesty International is one of the most active organizations in attempting to maintain efficacy among its activists as it tracks and reports its group's letter-writing efforts. Highlighting these successes helps to encourage future activism and strengthens support for the organizing body.

      Given the broad range of issues subsumed under the IGC networks, activists also have an opportunity to send their message to "third-party audiences," people not directly involved in their own organization. Gaining at least silent support for a movement's goals and actions is essential for movement success. Without gaining tacit support, movements are likely to encounter insurmountable resistance and cannot move forward on their agendas. Again, this function is evident in activist networks in which urgent issues regarding specific movements are advertised in general interest conferences and activists are encouraged to read material outside their specific area of involvement. Although Amnesty International's overt attempt seems to be to find letter writers, the latent effect of their solicitations is to spread information about the appalling conditions, torture, and human rights violations endured by political prisoners throughout the world. The result is strong pro-Amnesty International feelings that lend strength to the Amnesty International agenda.

      Although social psychological grievances have never seemed to be strong predictors of the emergence of social movements, McAdam, McCarthy, and Zald point out the important role these grievances play in producing the pool of potential activists: "The more integrated the person is into the aggrieved community, the more readily he or she can be mobilized for participation." ¹⁰ Although having a sympathetic attitude toward a movement does not necessarily compel one to become an activist, such an attitude is an important underlying prerequisite. The announcements, conversations, and reactions in computer conferences certainly facilitate awareness of movement issues and often are designed to elicit appropriately sympathetic attitudes, thereby moving the reader into the pool of potential activists.

      Another function of computer networking apparent in the text of activist conferences is direct recruiting through calls to action and solicitation of funds. Given what we know about activists becoming involved in new movements partially as a result of their involvement in other movements and organizations, we might view a computerized forum such as Peacenet as a virtual breeding ground for movement activists. Both direct involvement in conversations with other activists and simply reading announcements and information about protest activity can convince activists to take on new causes, develop new identities, and be socialized into new roles. This type of computer networking allows a person to access information about new issues and movements while investing only small amounts of time and energy.

Mass Media versus Computer Networks   Social movement activists have long depended on the successful use of the mass media to achieve their goals and get their message to potential movement participants. Although this method of disseminating information about grievances is inexpensive and reaches a very broad audience, activists often have trouble getting media attention and often have to resort to radical behavior to do so. Furthermore, generally they must turn control of the movement's message over to reporters and editors who may be unsympathetic or may distort the movement's message. ¹¹

      In addition to this loss of control over the message of the movement, mass media function differently from computer networks with regard to the process of coordinating action. The mass media essentially involve one-way communication and do not necessarily attempt to coordinate action. The computer network has the ability to reach people who are separated by great geographic distances (just as the media do), but it also allows them to return communication. The result is that along with purposeful coordination of action, there are opportunities to clarify and solicit agreement on plans of action. However, the computer network also loses some of the effect of mass media because of the limited and selective audience it serves. Thus, although some coordinating gains are made by computer networks, it is unlikely that computer technology will be able to reach even a small percentage of those whom traditional mass media can.

Density of Aggrieved Populations   Many social change theorists and social movement scholars posit that density of a particular population facilitates the growth of collective behavior. One classic example is the movement of blacks from southern rural areas to urban environments as a precipitating condition for the civil rights movement. ¹² Computer networks that allow two-way communication can facilitate an artificial density of an aggrieved population. ¹³ When people discover others who share like concerns and problems, the solidarity and community that typically arise from dense populations are the result. This dynamic is demonstrated clearly in the men's movement conference on Peacenet, where men who want to discuss issues relevant to progressive men's identities are able to find others like themselves. Through networking with others who share similar concerns, these participants develop a collective identity and are encouraged to become active in the movement. Although it is debatable how much computers precipitate mass action by creating artificial density, indicators of this dynamic do exist. Rather than precipitating the kind of uncoordinated mass action that occurred in many local sites after the Rodney King verdict (propelled by mass media accounts), computers are facile at cheaply coordinating actions such as Amnesty International's letter-writing campaigns, for which both a sense of outrage and detailed information are needed to carry out effective action. Private communication networks, such as America Online and MSN, are evidence that this type of aggregation and identity development can be facilitated as technology becomes available to wider audiences.

Coalitions and Coordination   Another area of social movement scholarship that activist computer networks are ideally configured to study is the connection between different social movement organizations (SMOs) within a broader movement. McAdam, McCarthy, and Zald call these broad groupings of SMOs pursuing similar goals social movement industries (SMIs). ¹⁴ Furthermore, given the broad membership of large communication networks such as IGC, it is possible to examine the connections not only between SMOs within an SMI but also across different SMIs. It is clear that the groups focusing on gay and lesbian rights are not in the same SMI as groups promoting bans on nuclear power. But it is equally clear that some activists are involved in both efforts and that there is ideological overlap between such activists' agendas. A large, diverse umbrella organization such as IGC provides a unique opportunity to study this overlap both in membership and in ideology. In most conference-related networks, participants subscribe to certain conferences in which they intend to participate regularly. Examining overlapping subscriptions to different groups' conferences within an SMI and across SMIs would provide an excellent representation of activist connections and the overall network. Furthermore, combining this type of network analysis with qualitative analyses of the content of both narrowly focused conferences and more generalist ones can provide information about the ideological sympathies of participants in the movements.

      Beyond simply mapping out the network, there has been a call for research to assess "under precisely what conditions we can expect competing SMOs to cooperate". ¹⁵ The computer network is an ideal research site to begin addressing this question. Because only a small portion of movement activity takes place in this setting, the researcher working with activist networks is unlikely to answer the question completely. However, she or he will find a record of information that is difficult to find elsewhere: recorded interactions between members of different SMOs and SMIs under conditions of both collaboration and competition.

      IGC itself is somewhat of an advance on the previous status of organizing in the social movement arena. It is doubtful that an umbrella organization with such a large and diverse membership has ever existed, much less endured or enjoyed the growth that IGC has. Whereas previous coalition organizations have been created for a singular purpose or under a single ideological identity, IGC—although it certainly has an ideology—is held together mainly through what can be considered a tactic or a resource: communication. Coalitions that have organized around a single goal often cannot maintain their own existence after the goal has been removed, either through success (e.g., the antipornography organizations analyzed by Curtis and Zurcher) ¹⁶ or through a structural change that makes immediate pursuit of the goal no longer reasonable (e.g., the defeat of the equal rights amendment). ¹⁷ With no immediate direction left for the group, the attempt to refocus often ends in divisive reactions, particularly because groups united for one purpose sometimes are made up of smaller groups that have little else in common ideologically. However, if ideology is not the force that brought an organization or individual into another organization, ideological changes (either inside the group or in the political climate) are much less likely to determine future participation. Thus in IGC or Peacenet, the umbrella remains stable because of what it provides to its participants: communication. Unless an easier or more efficient means of communication evolves to compete with these organizations, it is unlikely that the umbrella will fold.

Characteristics of Computer-Using Activists

Despite the amazingly long reach of computer networks, implications for mobilization to action are limited because the population of computer users, although growing, is still sparse and specialized in its orientation. One reason for sparse membership in activist networks is that startup costs are prohibitive for many activists and potential activists, limiting mass access to the networks. This problem is especially acute in less developed areas, where computers are especially difficult to access. Although the prices of computers and modems continue to fall, and many people can avoid these costs by accessing networks through educational or work facilities, many others simply cannot participate because of their economic situations.

      An even more significant obstacle is the time and effort needed to master the technical details of participating on the network. Certainly, the Web significantly reduced the learning curve for end users of the Internet. On the other hand, as the Web technology continues to advance, the complexity of maintaining an effective Web presence more and more requires trained computer experts, something many activist organization cannot afford. And even with the interface simplifications brought by the Web, computers can scare off potential users, thus limiting the reach of the network. These limits often are also greatest in populations who might have the greatest need for the political clout offered by protest. The U.S. Department of Commerce reported in 1998 that less that 10 percent of households with incomes under $25,000 used the Internet, whereas around 60 percent of those with incomes over $75,000 were online. The same study found a growing digital divide between the races, with blacks and Hispanics lagging significantly behind whites and Asians in computer ownership. ¹⁸

      Beyond just learning how to use computers and access networks, users must also become aware of the activist potential of the computer and locate these social movement forums within the computing world. Owning a computer and knowing how to operate its communication apparatus does not guarantee that activists will discover or become involved in organizations such as IGC.

      One process that can help overcome the elite user problem depends on the connection of computer-using actors to activists in noncomputer movement environments. If activists who participate on the network act as nodes, linking nonusers to the computer format and eventually to other nonusers who are connected to other nodes, the network disseminates information throughout the movement. This model is used by the AFL-CIO's LaborNet to connect union leaders throughout the United States, thereby indirectly linking the larger constituency. ¹⁹ Those who participate on the network can gather information from the network and transfer it to other activists through more traditional means. Likewise, these network nodes can gather information from traditional means and local activists and then post it on the network.

      Analyzing conference records allows easy observation of activists posting information about movements operating in their own local areas. The complementary end of the process is much less certain. Computer records do not tell how well activists collect information from the network and then use the information to further traditional means of collective behavior. If the people who participate on the Net are not involved in organizations other than computer conferences, the implications of the network for mass action are diminished.

Conclusion

The ultimate effects of improved communication through computerization on inequality and access to political power are difficult to predict. Nevertheless, it is clear that this technology is changing some of the contexts and processes of social movements. These changes both propose challenges and provide opportunities for understanding social movements and other types of collective behavior. Access to computer-mediated communication has become an important resource for activists and will continue to grow as a tool for activism. Understanding attempts to distribute access to this social movement resource and attempts to curtail mobilization by preventing or limiting access are important concerns with which resource mobilization scholars must grapple. Resource mobilization scholars must also examine the process of coordination that is unique to computerized communication. New social movement scholars likewise will find fertile data from computer sources with regard to identity-building processes and attempts to develop solidarity.

      Possibilities for examining intersections of resource mobilization and new social movement theories also exist within the computer domain. Analyzing the activity of computer-using activists as they attempt to establish a connection between the network and nonusers provides an important interface between these two theoretical approaches. The node activist's sense of responsibility in carrying out this essential resource mobilization function probably is rooted in the strength of his or her identity and ideological commitment to the social movement.

      This essay touches only a few issues related to social movements that can be investigated through computer networks. Among important issues neglected herein is the notion of abeyance structures, ²⁰ which sustain movements in times when mass support is not evident. Computer networks are full of movements that appear to be in abeyance yet can be sustained through a small number of activists on the network even if the activists are widely scattered geographically and have no opportunity for face-to-face communication.

      Another important issue not addressed here involves the position of a particular identity group within a given movement and the attempts of this group to influence the larger movement. Historical examples include Morris and McAdam's discussions of the role of women in the civil rights movement and Ryan's discussion of minority women in the contemporary women's movement. ²¹ Particularly salient recently have been data on the place of African Americans, Latinos, and bisexuals within the gay and lesbian movement as well as the position of gay and lesbian activists within other movements such as the Irish National Liberation Movement and the Irish Republican Army and within the African National Congress in South Africa. All these issues are discussed extensively and passionately in activist computer conferences. Finally, a last issue that might be investigated using data from computer networks is the rise of a new movement through the development of grievances within a "parent" movement. ²² For example, the information discussed in the various gay and lesbian conferences, and particularly in those dedicated to bisexual issues, allows us to observe the development of the bisexual movement within, and as a reaction to, the gay and lesbian movement.

      The computer activist network is a largely untapped resource for data about social movements that can provide a great deal of information about the processes of social movements. Perhaps the most attractive feature of these computer networks is the accurate and easily traceable path left by activists. Although collective behavior and social movement attitudes often develop in observable settings, records of such events sometimes are difficult to obtain and often rely on participants' memories. Actions and attitudes that develop on computer networks allow systematic data collection that often is not available in other social movement forums. However, it should be recognized that the records on communication networks often are incomplete. Participants communicate with others outside the computer network and spend time thinking about and working on movement activity completely independent of the computer. Nevertheless, records of communication that occurs on the network can be much more complete than records of analogous written communication in earlier movements, and these data provide an essential supplement to more traditional types of data about collective behavior and social movements.

Notes

      1. Everett M. Rogers, The New Media in Society (New York: Free Press, 1978); Angela G. King, "Closing the Digital Divide," U.S. News and World Report 128: 21 (May 29, 2000): 23-36.

      2. Peter Bachrach, The Theory of Democratic Elitism: A Critique (Boston: Little, Brown, 1967); Kenneth Laudon, Communication Technology and Democratic Participation (New York: Praeger, 1977).

      3. Michael F. McCullough, "Democratic Questions for the Computer Age," Computers in Human Services 8 (1991): 9-18; Howard Rheingold, The Virtual Community (New York: Harper, 1993).

      4. Manuel Castells, The Information Age, vol. 2: The Power of Identity (Oxford, England: Blackwell, 1997); Kevin A. Hill and John E. Hughes, Cyberpolitics: Citizen Activism in the Age of the Internet (Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield, 1998).

      5. John D. McCarthy and Mayer Zald, The Trend of Social Movements in America: Professionalization and Resource Mobilization (Morristown, N.J.: General Learning Press, 1973); J. Craig Jenkins, "Resource Mobilization Theory and the Study of Social Movements," Annual Review of Sociology 9 (1983): 527-53.

      6. Alberto Melucci, Nomads of the Present: Social Movements and Individual Needs in Contemporary Society (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1989); Alberto Melucci, Challenging Codes (Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1996).

      7. Hill and Hughes, Cyberpolitics; Craig Calhoun, "Community without Propinquity Revisited: Communication Technology and the Transformation of the Urban Public Sphere," Sociological Inquiry 68 (1998): 373-97; Mario Diani, "Social Movement Networks, Virtual and Real," paper presented at the conference "A New Politics," Centre for Cultural Studies and Sociology, University of Birmingham, 1999; Daniel J. Myers, "Media, Communication Technology, and Protest Waves," paper presented at the conference "Social Movement Analysis: The Network Perspective," Ross Priory, Scotland, 2000.

      8. Institute for Global Communications, IGC User's Manual (San Francisco: IGC/Tides Foundation, 1991); Institute for Global Communications, IGC Internet's Progressive Gateway, <http://www.igc.org>, accessed May 24, 2000.

      9. Doug McAdam, John McCarthy, and Mayer Zald, "Social Movements," in Handbook of Sociology, ed. Neil Smelser (Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage, 1988), 695-737.

      10. Ibid.

      11. Pamela E. Oliver, "Bringing the Crowd Back In: The Nonorganizational Elements of Social Movements," Research in Social Movements, Conflict, and Change 11 (1989): 1-30.

      12. Aldon Morris, The Origins of the Civil Rights Movement: Black Communities Organizing for Change (New York: Free Press, 1984).

      13. Howard Rheingold, The Virtual Community (New York: Harper, 1993).

      14. McAdam, McCarthy, and Zald, "Social Movements."

      15. Ibid.

      16. Russell Curtis and Louis Zurcher, "Stable Resources of Protest Movements: The Multi-Organizational Field," Social Forces 52 (1973): 53-61.

      17. Barbara Ryan, Feminism and the Women's Movement (New York: Routledge, 1992).

      18. King, "Closing the Digital Divide."

      19. Montieth Illingworth, "Workers on the Net, Unite!: Labor Goes Online to Organize, Communicate, and Strike," InformationWeek, August 22, 1994, 17-23.

      20. Verta Taylor, "Social Movement Continuity: The Women's Movement in Abeyance," American Sociological Review 54 (1989): 761-75.

      21. Morris, Origins of the Civil Rights Movement; Doug McAdam, Freedom Summer (New York: Oxford University Press, 1986); Ryan, Feminism and the Women's Movement.

      22. Steven M. Buechler, "Beyond Resource Mobilization?: Emerging Trends in Social Movement Theory," Sociological Quarterly 34 (1993): 217-35.