Chat Apps in Asia During Political Unrest

Hong Kong’s high level of technological penetration at all levels of society, status as regional headquarters for many large news organizations, recent political unrest, and location in the center of an emerging-markets region—where many consumers are direct-to-mobile users—all make the city a unique test case in the use of chat apps for crisis journalism. Typically, news organizations favor Hong Kong as a regional base because it is stable and wealthy, and has a high degree of technological sophistication, low corruption, and well-regarded rule of law. It is a window into the region, but rarely a news story itself.

During the 2014 protests, thousands of foreign journalists found a major political crisis and global news story on their own doorsteps, to which they brought their full reporting resources to develop a news story driven mainly by young locals, and organized using mobile technology—especially chat apps. Since journalists in Hong Kong are also responsible for covering the broader Asia region—home to the world’s most dynamic developing markets and key consumer mobile tech innovation—this experience gave them a unique perspective on the relative uses and risks associated with varied chat app platforms.


Memes of the 2014 Umbrella Revolution. Source: South China Morning Post.11

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