Explain how social media has transformed young people's advocacy for health issues, and its effectiveness when compared to traditional advocacy methods. (5 marks)
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*Language highlighting the cause-effect relationship is bolded in the answer below.
- Social media platforms have transformed youth health advocacy because instantaneous global reach enables young advocates like Greta Thunberg to communicate directly with worldwide audiences about climate change impacts on health.
- Unlike traditional advocacy requiring organisational support, social media empowers individual youth advocates to initiate grassroots campaigns through hashtags and viral content. This leads to communities forming around health issues such as mental health awareness.
- Social media spreads information in real-time for health demonstrations. This has resulted in protests such as youth-led climate strikes that are organised primarily through digital platforms.
- While traditional advocacy methods often relied on established organisations, social media enables young people to bypass gatekeepers. This particularly benefits marginalised youth voices because they gain unfiltered access to audiences.
- However, social media advocacy faces challenges including the potential for misinformation and the difficulty of maintaining momentum beyond initial viral moments. This reveals key limitations in digital-only approaches when compared to traditional advocacy.
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*Language highlighting the cause-effect relationship is bolded in the answer below.
- Social media platforms have transformed youth health advocacy because instantaneous global reach enables young advocates like Greta Thunberg to communicate directly with worldwide audiences about climate change impacts on health.
- Unlike traditional advocacy requiring organisational support, social media empowers individual youth advocates to initiate grassroots campaigns through hashtags and viral content. This leads to communities forming around health issues such as mental health awareness.
- Social media spreads information in real-time for health demonstrations. This has resulted in protests such as youth-led climate strikes that are organised primarily through digital platforms.
- While traditional advocacy methods often relied on established organisations, social media enables young people to bypass gatekeepers. This particularly benefits marginalised youth voices because they gain unfiltered access to audiences.
- However, social media advocacy faces challenges including the potential for misinformation and the difficulty of maintaining momentum beyond initial viral moments. This reveals key limitations in digital-only approaches when compared to traditional advocacy.