EVERYDAY MISOGYNY: DISCOURSES ABOUT DEPP V HEARD ON TWITTER

Abstract

This paper examines the manifestation of 'everyday' online misogyny. Social media platforms are often deeply unsafe spaces for women, particularly women who speak publicly about feminist issues. In response to a number of public controversies over the last decade, platforms have introduced a range of different design interventions and policy changes. However, these interventions have predominantly focused on the most extreme, unambiguous manifestations of online misogyny. Current literature on gender-based violence emphasises that ‘everyday’ expressions of misogyny play a significant role in normalising violence against women and reinforcing the beliefs that underpin the more exceptional misogynistic attacks. This paper presents the initial findings of a case study of everyday misogyny on Twitter in discourses about the $2 trial. It aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of how everyday misogyny manifests in ordinary language and debates on social media platforms, as a step towards developing better mechanisms for identifying and responding to online misogyny. Our preliminary findings challenge platforms' traditional reliance on counterspeech-based approaches to addressing the harms of everyday misogyny. Rather than serving as a remedy, this study suggests that online debate about women's experiences of violence can instead, in some circumstances, become a vehicle for oppression, a manifestation of everyday online misogyny.