Opinion: Social media is shaping the war with Ukraine
In November 1955, the Vietnam War split the country in two. Americans were frustrated with the government and its leaders for endorsing the war. This lasted until mid-1975.
But something was different about this war. In the conflicts before 1955, the American people became informed through newspapers and the radio, which wasn’t much. But during the course of the Vietnam War, major technological advancements were made, including huge improvements in cameras and television which brought the war to Americans’ homes.
Broadcast media made its first footprint on people’s lives. For the first time ever, Americans were able to see an up close and personal look at the war in the East and see faces, destruction and the pain it was bringing to everyone.
On Feb. 27, 1968, journalist Walter Cronkite made a broadcast from Vietnam to assess how the war was going. From this moment on, the media and how we view world events would change forever.
That moment shaped how we are viewing the contention and war between Russia and Ukraine.
From having a singular television set in a home, to nearly every single person we know having one in their pockets, we live in a world where we need to be constantly informed. That is neither good nor bad. Social media has been the most recent advancement where it stretches that itch of knowing.
There have been numerous books and papers written about the harmful and the beneficial effects of social media, but right now social media is being used for the good of Ukrainians, which they desperately need against the global superpower of Russia.
Feb. 24, 2022, was when Russia officially invaded Ukraine. There began an immediate outpour of support for Ukraine. Never in recent history has there been unanimous support for one country and against another, and it all happened over Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Reddit.
When you head over to the front page of
reddit.com and sort through the top posts within the past month, you are flooded with posts with support of Ukraine, attacks against Russia and uplifting stories from the people of Ukraine. Even videos and pictures from the front lines. You could scroll for literally an hour and see nothing but support for Ukraine. (Yes, that is exactly what I did).
The top post is a picture of a Ukrainian government official shaking hands with a Russian government official from 1996. The caption says, “In 1996 Ukraine handed over nuclear weapons to Russia ‘in exchange for a guarantee never to be threatened or invaded.’”
The post after that is a video of a huge crowd in St. Petersburg, Russia protesting the war.
On Facebook and Instagram, we have seen diverse ways of supporting Ukraine. People are changing their profile picture to the Ukrainian flag. People are starting GoFundMe pages. There was even a whole movement where people booked every single Airbnb in Ukraine, with no intention of staying there.
Right now is such a wonderful time to be involved and be informed. Reading uplifting stories of kind people helping others or seeing a picture of the president of Ukraine hanging out with the civilians in army clothes are all great to see.
And it is helping the Ukrainian cause greatly.
But it is not enough.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, who has said multiple times saying that he is not a hero or celebrity in all this, is on the world stage right now like he has never been before. Before his presidency, he was an actor and comedian, but now he is a soldier, a fighter, a protestor and a leader to all the people in his country.
March 16, Zelenskyy addressed the U.S. Congress, pleading for help and action. Calling President Biden by name, Zelenskyy said in English: “Being the leader of the world means to be the leader of peace.”
He later said to remember the feelings of sadness and terror we felt when those planes hit the Twin Towers or when Pearl Harbor was bombed.
“Our country experiences the same thing every day … every night for three weeks,” Zelenskyy said.
What is going on is extremely saddening and terrible. Nothing excuses the deaths.
Differences have been made. Pictures of families being able to get out safely, memes showing support in different ways. This is something that has never happened before, and it is amazing to see in real time. While yes, the past three years have felt like living through a history textbook where every day was a new page of historic events, this event that is unfolding now brings a lot of hope for a lot of people.
Living thousands of miles away, we cannot do much. But that is one of the beautiful things that come with living in an online era. We can smile when they smile, cry when they cry and cheer when they cheer.
You may not be able to physically help the Ukrainian people, but I know we can lift their morale, their spirits and support with everything we have.
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Kaden Schipaanboord is studying journalism at Utah State. He has a passion for movies and loves anything outdoors.
Keith Wilson is a cartoonist for the Statesman. He is majoring in biochemistry and enjoys puns, drawing and big band swing dancing.