Querdenken Movement during the COVID-19 Pandemic

InfoEpi Lab

Summary

The study investigates the formation of a digital counterpublic during the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on the Querdenken movement’s utilization of over 300 Telegram channels and group chats. It combines automated and manual text classification with network analysis to analyze public communication data sent over a 2-year period. The study reveals how Telegram facilitated both connective and collective action in ways that mirrored the movement’s organizational structure and objectives, and it examined the impact of individual information-sharing on the process of movement-building.

Figure 1: Results of quantitative actor classification of (a) actor types and (b) actor ideology across Telegram entity type and information ecosystems.

It identified that different parts of the counterpublic engaged with distinct information ecosystems to articulate their claims and mobilize action, reflecting time-dependent dynamics.

Key Findings

Platform Affordance & Appropriation: The Querdenken movement leveraged Telegram’s features to facilitate connective and collective action, aligning with the movement’s organizational structure and goals.
Information Ecosystems: Different sections of the counterpublic interacted with and maintained distinct information ecosystems to express their claims and mobilize contentious action. The broader information ecology used in Querdenken communications included media actors, legacy media, and other actors, highlighting the importance of a diverse range of information sources.
Networking and Self-Embedding: Telegram’s critical affordance enabled networking and self-embedding in the movement-building process, with movement-related information being shared prominently within the platform, emphasizing the platform’s role in information dissemination and movement-building.
Geographic Distribution: The geographic locations of the observed Telegram entities were unevenly distributed across Germany, with more group chats and channels created in West Germany, suggesting regional variances in mobilization strategies and the usage of pre-existing political networks.

Implications

Policy and Regulation: The study’s findings stress the importance of understanding how platform affordances and information ecosystems are leveraged by movements when designing platform regulations. This suggests the necessity of nuanced policies that consider the functionalities and usage patterns of different platforms.
Research Considerations: The study implies that it is crucial for research to contemplate the entire cross-platform information ecosystem in its networked connectedness and mutual interaction, urging a comprehensive approach to studying digital movements.
Movement Dynamics: Understanding the role of platform affordances and information ecosystems in movement-building can provide insights into how movements organize, mobilize, and disseminate information, which can be crucial for studying the dynamics of social and political movements.

Source

Buehling, K., & Heft, A. (2023). Pandemic Protesters on Telegram: How Platform Affordances and Information Ecosystems Shape Digital Counterpublics. Social Media + Society, 9(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051231199430

Citation

BibTeX citation:

@article{infoepi_lab2023,
  author = {{InfoEpi Lab}},
  publisher = {Information Epidemiology Lab},
  title = {Querdenken {Movement} During the {COVID-19} {Pandemic}},
  journal = {InfoEpi Lab},
  date = {2023-09-26},
  url = {https://infoepi.org/posts/2023/09/26-telegram.html},
  langid = {en}
}

For attribution, please cite this work as:

InfoEpi Lab. 2023. “Querdenken Movement During the COVID-19 Pandemic.” InfoEpi Lab, September. https://infoepi.org/posts/2023/09/26-telegram.html.