The personal is political? Blogging and citizen stories, the case of Mum's Army

Issue title: Political Blogs and Representative Democracy

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Simmons, Tracy^a

Affiliations: [a] Department of Media and Communication (incorporating the Centre for Mass Communication Research) University of Leicester, UK. E-mail: [email protected] | Institute of Communications Studies, Leeds University, Leeds, UK

Abstract: Much attention has been paid to the personal and intimate nature of blogging. This paper will develop such notions in relation to theories of intimate citizenship; that is, the way in which blogs provide a form of self authorship, not just as a form of expression or creative outlet, but how blogging is connected to the mobilisation of political subjectivity (or subjectivities). Some bloggers use personal experiences, narratives and stories to underpin or motivate campaigns and activists. For example, on the "Mums' Army" blog, women organise campaigns against 'anti-social behaviour' with personal accounts and experiences of perceived social problems in various local settings. This case study illuminates how intimate stories can potentially mobilize previously disengaged citizens to become more politically aware and engaged in their local communities. This is, therefore, an exploratory paper that considers how the cry of the 'personal is political', so redolent of new social movements, is particularly apt in terms of the growing phenomenon of blogging.

DOI: 10.3233/IP-2008-0145

Journal: Information Polity, vol. 13, no. 1-2, pp. 87-96, 2008