‘(Not) working 9–5’: the consequences of contemporary Australian-based online feminist campaigns as digital labour

Abstract

Social media–based platforms such as Facebook and Twitter are increasingly being used by feminists across the globe as a way to capture and harness wider audiences and draw their attention to individual campaigns and social issues. However, the moderators who work behind the scenes on these feminist campaigns are largely unrecognised for their work. This article frames the work of these activists as a form of digital labour – and one that carries series of consequences for the movement in relation to activist burnout. In this article, I draw on data gathered from interviews undertaken with representatives from three Australian-based contemporary feminist campaigns in order to demonstrate that feminist campaigners within contemporary online feminist campaigns undertake a form of digital labour and examine the effects of this labour for activists involved in these groups.