Subroto Subroto
Universitas Ibnu Khaldun Bogor

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Beyond Likes: Constructing Performative Activism and Slacktivism among Indonesian Generation Z on TikTok: A Critical Discourse Analysis Subroto Subroto; Zaldy Handi Aditia; Andi Banus Achir; Maya May Syarah
SABER : Jurnal Teknik Informatika, Sains dan Ilmu Komunikasi Vol. 4 No. 3 (2026): Juli : Jurnal Teknik Informatika, Sains dan Ilmu Komunikasi
Publisher : STIKes Ibnu Sina Ajibarang

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.59841/saber.v4i3.3874

Abstract

The rapid growth of TikTok as a short-form video-based social media platform has transformed the nature of digital activism, particularly among Generation Z, the platform's largest user group. Beyond functioning as a medium for information dissemination, TikTok has become a space for digital identity construction, the expression of social concern, and the negotiation of activist meanings. However, the increasing prevalence of online participation has also intensified debates concerning the boundaries between performative activism and slacktivism. This study aims to examine how the discourses of performative activism and slacktivism are constructed within TikTok content produced by Indonesian Generation Z through the perspective of Norman Fairclough's Critical Discourse Analysis. Employing a qualitative research design, the study applies Fairclough's three-dimensional analytical framework encompassing textual analysis, discursive practice, and social practice. The data were collected through digital documentation and non-participant observation of 56 TikTok videos addressing environmental sustainability, mental health, education, gender equality, and humanitarian issues, together with their captions, hashtags, and audience comments. The findings reveal that digital activism is constructed through persuasive language, visual representations, symbols of solidarity, and communication strategies oriented toward algorithmic visibility. Activist practices on TikTok are predominantly characterized by symbolic forms of participation, including the use of campaign hashtags and calls to like, share, and comment, whereas explicit invitations to engage in offline collective action remain relatively limited. Furthermore, the findings demonstrate that performative activism and slacktivism should not be understood as dichotomous concepts but rather as a continuum of digital participation shaped by individual motivations, platform characteristics, participatory culture, and TikTok's algorithmic mechanisms. This study contributes to the advancement of digital communication scholarship by integrating the concepts of performative activism, slacktivism, and Critical Discourse Analysis to explain the transformation of activism within algorithm-driven social media ecosystems.