#ReclaimSocial for positive stories of social good, urges Lightful
Howard Lake | 6 February 2018 | News
Tech-for-good platform Lightful has launched a campaign to “reclaim social media for good”, inviting individuals, charities and organisations to post at least one positive message a day on social media.
Backed by organisations including Comic Relief, NCVO, the Institute of Fundraising and Whizz-Kidz, the campaign calls for an end to the overwhelming negativity on social media, the fake news and hate-filled trolling of individuals.
The message reached an estimated 10 million people on social media alone within the first five hours.
The online campaign was triggered with a Thunderclap in which multiple people and organisations ‘donated’ a campaign message to be sent at the same time via their Twitter, Facebook or Tumblr accounts.
Lightful has its own positive message of taking action to counter the negativity. It argues that charities, social enterprises and individuals themselves often have some of the best, most positive and most powerful stories to share on social media.
The campaign’s tagline was “There’s too much negativity on social media nowadays. Let’s reclaim social media for good”. The message was even presented to delegates at Davos recently.
Examples of tweets supporting the #ReclaimSocial campaign
Ruth Owen OBE, CEO of Whizz-Kidz, said: “Social media is hugely important for many of the young wheelchair users we support, not only for connecting with their friends but also the wider world.
“What’s more, Whizz-Kidz sees social media as a vital tool for raising the voice of young disabled people and challenging negative perceptions of disability, and for us #ReclaimSocial is an opportunity to celebrate the individuals and organisations using these platforms to effect positive change.”
Another brilliant example of how we can use social media for good! #ReclaimSocial https://t.co/Qnyax7VjRR
— Kirsty Marrins (she/her) | Copywriter (@LondonKirsty) February 6, 2018
Advertisement
We want to #reclaimsocial for good news with @Lightful by highlighting one of our favourite #fundraising stories – our teams are doing a great job raising awareness for good causes every day: pic.twitter.com/pp5h0pNF6R
— HOME fundraising (@HomeD2D) February 6, 2018
Yes to this! Take a scroll through #ReclaimSocial and feel cheery https://t.co/lR7cYqKdPh
— Gemma Pettman (@GemmaPettmanPR) February 6, 2018
#ReclaimSocial because it's a space where young people can learn from each other, raise issues and explore new identities pic.twitter.com/w2pQRKHb9x
— Whizz Kidz (@WhizzKidz) February 6, 2018
Billboard coverage
#ReclaimSocial on the streets of London
The campaign was amplified by digital OOH specialist Outdoor Plus, who donated six digital roadside screens for the message, reaching an audience of approximately 1.7 million people in locations across London, including Euston Underpass, Greenwich and Wembley Way.
The screens are also sharing some of the latest live tweets of people using #ReclaimSocial, providing a real-time view of how people are engaging with the campaign.
Political support coincided
The campaign launched on the same day that Theresa May addressed a group of people in Manchester to mark the centenary of some women in the UK securing the vote. She said: “Social media… should be a force for good… but it is often being exploited and abused often anonymously”.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BexzV1mhqMI/?taken-by=lightful
Best stories to tell
Vinay Nair, CEO & Co-Founder of Lightful, explained why the campaign had been launched.
He said: “Charities and social enterprises have some of the best stories to tell, which is why we’re delighted to help grow the potential of using social media for social good – we certainly need that to happen now more than ever. We are humbled to see so many people getting behind the #ReclaimSocial movement, and this feels like just the beginning.”
Lightful was founded in 2015 “to revolutionise the way charities and social enterprises drive genuine positive action through social media”. It was set up by Vinay Nair (CEO), Carlos Miranda (Chairman) and Johnny Murnane (COO), from Ireland, the US and Ireland respectively.
WATCH: Vinay Nair introduce #ReclaimSocial
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.