Framing Azawad in the Age of Facebook: The MNLA, Social Media, Narrative, and Identity Pubblico

Abstract

This thesis quantitatively and qualitatively analyzes the public-facing Facebook discourse during the period from 2012 through 2015 of officials and supporters of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), a group seeking the secession of the northern region of Mali as the state of Azawad through armed struggle against the Malian state. Although during this period the MNLA officially conceptualized Azawad as a non-ethnic state, members and fighters of the MNLA were predominantly from the Tuareg ethnic group, and the MNLA’s uprising was presented both by the MNLA and by others as a continuation of previous Tuareg-led rebellions in northern Mali. After introducing the history of northern Mali and the MNLA through the end of the survey period, this thesis presents and analyzes a dataset drawn from the Facebook postings of MNLA communications officials and other pro-MNLA Facebook accounts, set against the backdrop of offline events relevant to the MNLA. Next, drawing on Robert Entman’s conception of framing, three dominant narrative frames present in pro-MNLA Facebook discourse are identified and analyzed. Finally, further elements of pro-MNLA Facebook discourse relevant to the peace process in Mali, ongoing at time of writing, are discussed. This thesis aims to contribute to the scholarly literature on social media communications by armed groups, especially groups that do not espouse an Islamist ideology and groups that operate on the African continent.

Table of Contents

List of Acronyms.............................................................................................................................1

Glossary of Non-English Terms......................................................................................................3

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................4

Chapter 1: “Repression, Rebellion, and Nationalism: Northern Mali/Azawad Through 2011”.....9

 

Chapter 2: “War and Peace in Northern Mali/Azawad: The MNLA, October 2011-December 2015”..............................................................................................................................................37

 

Chapter 3: “The MNLA on Facebook: Social Media Outreach by the Numbers”........................64

 

Chapter 4: “Dominant Pro-MNLA Discourse Frames and Identity on Facebook”.......................93

 

Chapter 5: “Pro-MNLA Facebook Discourse and the Peace Process in Mali”...........................114

 

Final Conclusions and Avenues for Further Research.................................................................124

 

Bibliography................................................................................................................................126

Appendix 1: Full Texts of Social Media Posts Referenced in Chapter 4....................................134

About this Honors Thesis

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School	Emory College
Department	Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies
Degree	B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	African Studies Middle Eastern Studies Multimedia Communications
Parola chiave	Azawad MNLA Mali framing social media
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Sam Cherribi, Emory University
Committee Members	Subha Xavier, Emory University Vincent Cornell, Emory University

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