Critical Analysis of Social Media

A branch of social media studies that applies critical theory—particularly frameworks of power, ideology, and political economy—to understand social media not as neutral tools but as sites of exploitation, control, and ideological reproduction. It examines surveillance capitalism, algorithmic bias, platform labor, the commodification of attention, and the role of social media in political polarization and democratic erosion. Critical analysis asks whose interests platforms serve, how they shape perception, and what alternatives might look like. It is an essential corrective to techno‑utopian narratives.

Example: “Her critical analysis of social media showed that the ‘free’ platform was actually extracting data, attention, and emotional labor while offloading the costs of content moderation onto unpaid users.”

by Dumu The Void March 30, 2026