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Abstract
In recent years, the world of social media and online networking has met with the world of international development, leading to rapid changes in development practice and to the emergence of new fields of study. Proponents of this change argue that the Internet provides the tools for global cooperation and participation. However, the reality is less clear, with critics asserting that much of the Information and Communication Technology and networking discourse and practice is rooted in past approaches to development. This reflects a wider debate about whether ICT provides space for alternative views and social movements, or if it represents a new form of networked “information colonialism.” Drawing on ethnographic research with the online development-oriented network projecthonduras.com, this paper reflects on these debates, and on the wider implications of social media in development practice. An early model of peer-to-peer collaboration in development, projecthonduras.com has over a decade of networking experience and has been the catalyst for many connections and encounters, which have, at times, literally saved lives. However, while research with this network highlights some potential for disintermediated and inclusive networking, it also provides an example of a conventional development approach operating within an online space, and illustrates the impact of digital exclusion and homophily. Using the networking concepts of disintermediation, participation and diversity/homophily, this paper explores the structure and discourse of projecthonduras.com and illustrates the paradoxical nature of ICT and social media in development, providing a cautionary note to those who look to social media to provide answers to contemporary development dilemmas.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
Notes on contributor
Sharon J McLennan is a post-doctoral fellow and lecturer in Development Studies at Massey University in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Working with a team of researchers, her post-doctoral research investigates the corporate community development initiatives of mining and tourism multinationals in the Pacific. She completed her Ph.D. in 2012 which looked at the networking of small, volunteer organizations in Honduras, and she continues to be involved in research on volunteering and social media in development. Linking these research themes is an interest in new actors in development, and in contemporary development processes and globalization.
Notes
1. This paper uses a broad definition of social media which draws from Juris’ (Citation2012, p. 274) description of social media as “web-based channels for social networking, microblogging, and the sharing of user-generated content” and Kaplan and Haenlein's (Citation2010, p. 61) characterization of social media as “Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user generated content.” This allows for an understanding of social media that incorporates both the functions of social media and the technological foundations on which it is based. As such, the terms social media and online networking are often used together in this paper, with the term social media referring to the networking sites and content, and online networking referring to the process and outcomes of the use of social media and other networking tools.
2. Projecthonduras.com hosts and annual conference in Copán Ruinas, Honduras, which provides an opportunity for face-to-face networking, complementing and extending the online network.
3. Appreciative Inquiry is a method focusing on positive organizational attributes that may fuel change. It is most often used as a tool for organizational change, but it is one that is becoming increasingly visible among academics. AI aims to bring out the best and expand the possible; however, practitioners do not believe that it turns a blind eye to the negative, and see AI as a starting point from which to work, establishing a dynamic in which people are able to speak freely about their experiences rather than from a defensive mode or a presumed need to justify themselves and their work (Michael, Citation2005; Reed, Citation2007).
4. All interviews were recorded, and were carried out and transcribed by the author.
5. NVivo is a qualitative data analysis computer software package which is designed to help researchers organize and analyze un-structured and non-numerical data.
6. The Petersburg Prize (now known as the Development Gateway Award) recognizes outstanding achievement in the application of ICT to improve lives in developing countries.