Social Sphere
2020 Begins with a Bang
[#LEBANONREVOLTS]: THE MYSTERY OF MISSPELLED HASHTAGS
As the Lebanese uprising goes on, the corresponding hashtag continues to periodically appear at the top of Twitter’s trends. But what also continues to appear are misspelled variations such as ʞƀʯʹŕbàoeʹʮƃ # for instance, which sometimes leads people into using the misspelled hashtag in their tweets given its appearance in the suggestions while the tweet is being written. And while the issue could totally be dismissed as a typo, it does rekindle the conversation about Twitter bots [automated accounts] and their evolution throughout the years, which could be linked to the proliferation of such misspellings. The activity of bots today has become more believable given the development of their conversational skills on the one hand and the rise of ‘cyborgs’ i.e. automated accounts that are partially managed by humans. This has led data scientists to list such nuanced ‘inorganic coordinated activity’ as a new online threat whereby a group of bots, humans or both actively attempts to influence online conversation through targeted messaging posted at a strategic time. This being said, there is no surefire way of knowing the origin of misspelled revolution hashtags with an aim to assess their intentionality, but it is nevertheless interesting to look at the ever-growing intricacy of social media platforms and the camouflaged threats they have come to retain.
THE KILLING OF #SULEIMANI SPARKS GLOBAL #WWIII SCARE
Tension between the US and Iran escalated to an all-time high after Iranian Major General Qassem Suleimani was killed in a US drone strike near the Baghdad International Airport on January 3. And while corresponding hashtags #Suleimani and #Iran eventually soared up the trends as soon as the big news broke, it was another trending hashtag that seemed to have captured the world’s attention. People rushed to anticipate a lurking World War III incarnated in the hashtag #WWIII, which appeared in over 1.6 million tweets in less than 24 hours, ultimately becoming a meme that allowed social media users to channel their existential dread by immersing themselves into the war scenario.
#MEGXIT: ROYAL EXIT HAS TWITTER REMINISCING ON #BREXIT
On January 8, the world woke up to the unforeseen news that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were stepping down as senior members of the Royal Family, sending the Internet into a frenzy that culminated into trending hashtag #Megxit, essentially a wordplay on #Brexit. And while it was later revealed that the hashtag had previously been used in derogatory comments made about Markle, its rise to the top after the announcement had more to do with the actual event, as users flooded the platform with a wave of polarizing opinions and reactions. The pair also revealed they’ll be splitting their time evenly between the UK and North America and ultimately work to become financially independent.
TEMPERS FLARE OVER #IRAN UKRAINIAN JET DOWNING
A Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737 plane crashed after takeoff from Tehran on January 8, leaving all 176 passengers dead. And while the majority of victims were Iranian, the plane also had Canadian, Ukrainian, Swedish, Afghan, German and British nationals on board, which gave the incident a larger international impact, notably in the aftermath of Suleimani’s killing. After initially denying the claims, Iran admitted a couple days later that its armed forces unintentionally shot down the Ukrainian plane, spurring a harsh wave of online and offline reactions under the #Iran hashtag.
#CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK DECLARED GLOBAL HEALTH EMERGENCY
First reported in Wuhan, China on December 31 of last year, the novel Coronavirus outbreak was declared a global health emergency by the World Health Organization after spreading to a number of countries. New developments, information and preventive measures pertaining to the epidemic continue to be shared under the corresponding hashtag as the world struggles to find a cure. Symptoms can range from common cold signs like fever, cough and breathing difficulties to far more severe respiratory complications resulting in pneumonia, acute respiratory syndrome and kidney failure and ultimately death.
[#RAGEWEEK]: LEBANESE PROTESTERS SET UP THEIR NEW YEAR’S REVOLUTION
The third week of January marked a first 2020 milestone for the Lebanese Uprising as protesters declared it a full week of rage against the ruling class, which saw violent clashes between protesters and the police and a partial return of roadblocks in many parts of the country. The clashes resulted in many arrests and injuries, which added fuel to the fire, prompting the corresponding hashtag to the very top of Twitter’s local trends on multiple occasions and brining the question of human rights violations into the spotlight once again.
#HADLEYGAMBLE VS. #GEBRANBASSIL: AN UNEVEN MATCH MADE IN DAVOS
Former Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil’s invitation to represent Lebanon in this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos did not seem to sit well with Lebanese people, as many took to Twitter to voice their criticism of the decision, prompting an online petition against him speaking on behalf of the entire country.
The hype still did not deter Bassil, considered one of the most contested figures in Lebanese politics, from accepting the invitation. Unluckily for him, however, his Davos interview with CNBC anchor Hadley Gamble, did not go well at all, leaving him the subject of major online criticism and turning Gamble’s confused reactions compilation into a full-fledged online meme. International media did not hold back either, which also contributed to the rapid proliferation of the corresponding hashtags on Twitter throughout and after the interview.
#AUSTRALIA BUSHFIRE CRISIS MOBILIZES WORLDWIDE ACTION
Despite the change in weather conditions that brought some rain into different parts of the country, Australia’s bushfire crisis continued to make headlines throughout the month of January after eating up over 11 million hectares of land, destroying countless houses and killing half a billion animals and at least 33 people. The scale of the crisis is large to the point where smoke resulting from bushfires was even able to spread all the way to New Zealand. Many people and celebrities including Nicole Kidman, Kylie Minogue and Elton John have pitched in with financial donations and creative fundraising campaigns to help support fire-affected communities in response to the devastating crisis.
#KOBE: THE WORLD HONORS BASKETBALL LEGEND FOLLOWING TRAGIC HELICOPTER CRASH
Basketball legend Kobe Bryant’s tragic death in a helicopter crash alongside his daughter 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others on January 26 came as a shock to fans and fellow celebrities around the world who took to Twitter to express their sorrow and pay tribute to the NBA superstar. The hashtag #Kobe instantly took over Twitter’s worldwide trends with people sharing quotes, memories and throwback photos of the iconic player. Tributes continued at the 2020 Grammy Awards, which took place just hours after at the Staples Center in downtown LA, where Bryant played countless home games for the Lakers.
[#THEDEALOFTHECENTURY]: TRUMP PEACE PLAN RAISES MAJOR CONCERNS
US President Donald Trump did not let the first month of 2020 slip by with no major revelations, unveiling a highly controversial peace plan for the middle east dubbed #Thedealofthecentury on January 28 in the presence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Deemed detrimental for the Palestinian cause, the proposal aiming to regulate the Israeli-palestinian conflict was unanimously rejected by Arab states and highly debated on Twitter.
[#SPARKOFHOPE]: ANNAHAR HOLDS ON TO HOPE IN LATEST SPECIAL ISSUE
Following in the footsteps of its bestselling blank issue and national anthem women empowerment cover, leading Lebanese newspaper Annahar released yet another special issue on January 30 to convey a message of hope in the midst of the struggles the country is currently facing. Edited by award-winning artist and cancer survivor Elissa, the issue featured the touching stories of people from Lebanon and Arab World who held onto hope despite major struggles and were able to pull though and was quickly sold out thanks to its inspiring impact.