Hashtag Hijacking

Created by: Lauren LeGorrec, Caitlin Greenho, Jordan Snyder, Alexa Povlitz
Overview of Workshop (1.5-2 hrs)
Workshop description: This workshop is designed to explore the power of a hashtag. Participants
will gain the skills to take an already existing and trending hashtag, alter its meaning and utilize it
with a new perspective to provoke social change.
Intended Audience:
This workshop is intended for organizations and individuals looking to expand their social
impact by creating meaningful media targeted at reaching new and larger audience. It is focused
on a demographic that is familiar with using hashtags and various social media platforms. This
workshop is recommended for a minimum 10-12 participants.
Facilitator Notes:
Notes will be given at the beginning of each workshop section, and are also
here for your convenience
Facilitators should create a Facebook group or use the preexisting group located here:
http://on.fb.me/1HWMWPR
The Facebook group will serve as a shared platform for
participants and moderators to view and post media during the workshop.
If facilitators are interested in having more information about hashtags listen to NPR
breakdown titled
The Art and Strategy of the Hashtag
Ice Breaker: You will have to do some research to prepare at least 5 photos that have
meaningful hashtags. Good places to look are the trending hashtag sections on Twitter
and Instagram. These should be current images/hashtags to keep this workshop fresh and
up to date for participants.
Introduction of the hashtag: The facilitators are welcome to find their own photos or use
the images provided below and on the Facebook page. If you provide your own images,
the images should be broad enough to be associated with several different topics.
Keep in mind that you will be asking the participants to hijack a hashtag before
you explain the concept so they can understand the formal definition after the
activity.
Encourage them to change the meaning of the photo with the hashtag to
demonstrate the act of hijacking, rather than just explaining the term. Avoid using
the term hijack until the next section.
Introduction of hijacking: Have the #FirstWorldProblems video ready to show to the
whole class. The link is available on the Facebook page.
Main Activity (Media Mock-Up): First generate a list of social issues, then pass out the
hashtags. Students should choose social issues from the list generated to connect to their
hashtag. Cross off the social issue when it has been selected to avoid overlap.

Supplies Needed:
1.
Participants will need at least one computer per 3 people
2.
A whiteboard or easel
3.
Scrap paper
4.
Writing utensils
5.
Projection screen or display
6. A Facebook group specifically for the workshop
** Facilitator Note: You will have to do some research to prepare (gathering current
hashtags and stock photos) before performing the workshop **
Definition of hashtag
: A hashtag is a word or phrase preceded by a hash or pound sign (#) and
used to identify messages on a specific topic. This word or phrase can be anything, and the
messages using this identifier (the hashtag) can also be anything. Commonly, hashtags are used
to identify either a joke, a social issue, a campaign, or a trending subject, such as the presidential
election or a popular TV show. At its core, a hashtag is used to follow a topic and engage in a
discussion.
End Goal Explanation:
Explain that the end goal of this workshop is to give the students the
tools to utilize this modern media technique. Hashtags are such a large part of the way that social
media operates today, and in addition to having a tagging function as an instrument to
categorize and systematize, the hashtag functions as a unique way of speaking for a campaign and
sometimes an entire cause or issue. The hashtag becomes the thing that people will remember,
and a staple part of the campaign. There is a lot of power embedded in this simple hashtag, and it
is our goal to harness that power to provide an opportunity for new meaning and action.
If facilitator feels that participants need more clarification of what a hashtag is or how its used
please show this
video
(6 min)
Ice Breaker 1: Get to Know Each Other (5 Min)
Have each participant go around the room and discuss the most recent hashtag they used or
remember. What was the meaning behind it? What social media platform did you use? What was
the context of the post?
If participant doesnt have a recent hashtag, then suggest looking for a popular hashtag theyve
heard about or know is trending to discuss. Hashtags are meant to be random and fun, it can be
interesting to imagine how these trends that do not seem socially engaged could be modified and
thought of as being socially conscious.

This section is meant to have participants begin to notice how prominent hashtags are in our
society and the vastness of reasons for using one.
Ice Breaker 2: Matching Game (10 min)
Facilitator Note: This section requires having researched at least 5 photos that have
meaningful hashtags. Good places to look are the trending hashtag sections on Twitter and
Instagram. These are meant to be current images/hashtags to keep this workshop fresh
and up to date for participants.
Facilitators should post the 5 images and 5 hashtags on the Facebook group prior to the
workshop. Display the 5 images and 5 hashtags on a screen/projector in a random order. Task
the participants to team up with someone and discuss which image best matches the hashtag.
Example setup:

Once the participants are confident they have matched the image to the hashtag correctly, reveal
the original matches. Discuss which matches were gotten right vs. wrong, and how the meaning
behind some photos could have been different if a different hashtag was selected.

Introducing the Hashtag (15-20 minutes)

Facilitator Note: The facilitators are welcome to find their own photos or use the images
provided below and on the Facebook page. If you upload your own images to the page, the
images should be broad enough to be associated with several different topics.
Keep in mind that you will be asking the participants to hijack a hashtag
before you explain the concept so they can understand the formal definition
after the activity.
Encourage them to change the meaning of the photo with the hashtag to
demonstrate the act of hijacking, rather than just explaining the term. Avoid
using the term hijack until the next section.
Step 1: Display an image on the projector screen for the entire group to see. The image should be
a generic image that could be associated with many topics. An example would be a photo of
someone with their arms outstretched on a mountaintop or a picture of a herd of black cows with
one white cow. Have the group brainstorm possible hashtags that could be associated with the
picture. Have the participants take notice of the different topics that one picture can relate to.
The facilitator may use the example image, or provide their own image.

Step 2: Display four to five ambiguous images on the screen. Split the participants into groups of
three or four and have each group choose two of the images to create hashtags for. When the
groups are finished, have them share the hashtags with the group while the moderator writes the
different hashtags for the different photos on the board.

Step 3: Have each group choose one of the hashtags from the board (not their own) and cross off
the hashtags as they are chosen. After every group has chosen a hashtag, have them search the
web for three very different evocative images that could use their chosen hashtag: one comedic,
one serious and one of their choice. Encourage the groups to be creative and twist the meaning of
the hashtag as it was used with the original image. Have each group upload their new images to
the facebook page to they can be displayed before the group.
Step 4: Allow each group to present their new images and tell them to explain why they chose the
images and how the meaning of the original hashtag has changed.
Step 5: Group reflection. How did the hashtag you originally came up with change with the
association of a new image? Are there any similarities between the original image and the new
image? What does this say about medias influence on message communication? Can you think of
real-life situations that reflect what we just witnessed?
Introducing the Concept of Hijacking (10-15 minutes)
The facilitator should introduce the concept of hijacking at this time.
Definition of hijacking
: Hijacking a hashtag happens when a hashtag is used for a different
purpose than the one originally intended. A crucial component of hijacking is to keep the same
phrasing of the original hashtag, but changing its meaning. This concept is best explained through
the example of the Water is Life campaign #FirstWorldProblems.

The facilitator should then show the group the following video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fxyhfiCO_XQ
This video is an example of an existing hashtag, #FirstWorldProblems, which had an existing
meaning. This meaning may or may not be tied to a campaign, in the case of
#FirstWorldProblems, it was not. The meaning of the hashtag was then changed by the Water is
Life organization to reflect a social issue, and this video was used to supplement a larger
campaign by the organization seeking donations.
While hijacking can be used to change a hashtag jokingly, the purpose of this workshop is to show
how a hashtags meaning can be used to generate awareness for a social cause. The appeal of
hijacking is in its flexibility: the goal of the new campaign can be anything ranging from
increasing visibility of an issue to getting people to sign up for an email newsletter to asking for
donations to an organization. The facilitator should emphasize that this is the appeal of hijacking.
Furthermore, hijacking is not limited to hashtags - the concept can be applied to any social media
trend, such as viral videos or memes. However, for the purpose of this workshop, the facilitator
will be focusing on hijacking hashtags to raise awareness for a social cause, as touching on these
other issues is a much larger discussion.
Have a class discussion surrounding the use of #FirstWorldProblems:
What was the original use/meaning of the hashtag?
What was the new meaning of the hashtag after Water is Life hijacked it?
What was the goal of the hijacked hashtag for the Water is Life campaign?
The original meaning of the hashtag was ironic, so changing its meaning furthered
the irony. Hijacking can be humorous, but for the purpose of this workshop, we
recommend groups/individuals change the meaning of a humorous hashtag to a
serious one.
The purpose of this discussion is to ensure everyone understands the terms being used, and how
hijacking a hashtag can be used for a social campaign.
Main Activity: Media Mock-Up and Hijacking (30-40 minutes)
The purpose of this activity is to teach students to use the effectiveness of existing campaigns on
a new campaign. That is, students should leave this workshop understanding how existing
hashtags were effective (how they went viral), and how they can apply these techniques to make
their hijacked hashtag effective as well. For example, #FirstWorldProblems was well-known
because of its humor and relativity (people could relate to it), and the hijacked version of this
hashtag took this high-profile hashtag and used it for their own purposes.
Important questions to consider: (do not need to ask these to the class, should just be kept in
mind when explaining the purpose of the activity to the class)

 What lessons learned from the original use of the hashtag can be applied to the new
hijacked hashtag?
What was effective about the original campaign/meaning that can be effective in the new
campaign/meaning?
What is the end goal of your hijacked hashtag? Is it to raise awareness? Get people to
donate? Lead to the organizations website? It is okay if each group has a very different
answer to this question - as mentioned earlier, the flexibility of the hijacked hashtag is its
greatest strength.

The facilitator and the class should generate a list of social issues, ideally around 10. Write these
ideas on the board.
The facilitator should have a hat (or some container) with pieces of paper. Each piece of paper
should have a hashtag written on it. Have the class form groups of 2-3, and have each group draw
a hashtag from the hat. Potential hashtags include:
#DontAskMeTo
#NotAllMen
#GottaLiveItUp
#INeedARedo
#NotTrue
#TreatYoSelf
#KThanksBye
#JustSayin
#SorryNotSorry
#Blessed
#SkinnyGirlProblems
#NewYearNewMe
Each group will then go to the board and select a social issue to go with their hashtag from the list
of social issues previous generated.
Each group then creates a media mock-up campaign for their hashtag. The first part of this
activity is to have each group research the existing use of their hashtag. This includes finding
posts on any social media platform they can find, and collecting uses of the existing hashtag.
Then, the group is to hijack the hashtag and come up with an alternative use for the hashtag
that supplements a social good campaign relating to the social cause they picked earlier. This new
movement can be expressed via a skit, video, or mock-up of a social media campaign.
An example of this activity is shown below.
Example:

A group draws the hashtag #FeelinMyself. See below for example posts of the existing use of this
hashtag. The group could then hijack the hashtag to support breast cancer awareness, and use the
hashtag to mean that everyone should conduct a breast cancer examination on themselves every
few months. (Exams are conducted by feeling the breast area, hence the hashtag #FeelinMyself.)
The group would then create a mock-up campaign showing sample posts of the new hijacked
hashtag. Explain that the main goal of this campaign is to create content in such a way that raises
an element of awareness regarding the social issue, but from there, is up to each group to
determine what their hashtag really brings to light. Perhaps this is a motivation to donate money,
to join a club - whatever it is, encourage them to provide their audience with the opportunity for
action.

Presentation (15 minutes)

Once the group has hijacked their hashtag, they are now tasked with looking at their new content
from a media campaign standpoint. While it is up to the discretion of each individual group to
determine the way that they present their mock-up campaign, it is encouraged that they find a
unique, engaging way to utilize media in such a way that accentuates the meaning of their
hashtag. Designate their options as any form of media that makes an argument, or is capable of
telling a story. This includes but is not limited to: a video, a skit, a PSA, a photo stream, a social
media mockup site of posts, a twitter stream/interaction, instagram photo campaign, etc.
Have each group link/post their presentation to the Facebook group.
Conclusion
+ Discussion (10-20 minutes)

Now that the participants have created their campaigns, they will be asked to share each of their
creations and talk about why they chose this specific platform for their issue. Some questions for
discussion for each group and amongst the whole class:
Why did you choose this specific medium to produce your content?
How does this platform work in a way that benefits what you are trying to say?
What was the biggest challenge in adapting your groups hashtag to have a new meaning
that fits the constraints of your chosen social issue/movement?
What sort of things did you realize about the old meaning in researching and coming up
with a new meaning of it?
Did changing your perspective force you to look at it in a new way or notice anything
different about the hashtags original meaning or intent?
What worked? What didnt work?
How do you think you changed the conversation by changing your hashtag meaning?
What kinds of things did your campaign emulate that were similar to another or the
original campaign?
What can be taken from this exercise in terms of manipulating the meaning of something
to give it new significance and power?

Have students focus on the most meaningful aspects of their argument and campaign in a way
that perpetuates their story or cause. Reiterate the importance of the hashtag as a modern social
media tool that characterizes the way we use media today. Remind them that the hashtag
functions as a way of speaking for a campaign and sometimes an entire cause or issue. After
putting in so much thought, research, and new meaning into their hashtags, they become elevated
staple parts of the campaign and often the way that they are remembered or characterized.
Challenge the students to keep thinking about ways in which they can articulate new meanings
for things with preconceived definitions or interpretations. The way in which we do this can truly

define the notions of the argument and the logos, ethos, and pathos that come across in a groups
campaign. Focusing on the storytelling elements and the way in which we can change and define
an entire entitys meaning is the key to making social change happen, and providing a platform
for new significance and importance to be made. Leave the students with a final thought or call to
action: how does your campaign mock-up provide audiences with the opportunity to act? Does it
intend to motivate them to do anything? Or does it merely raise awareness for further self
inspection and thought? The students should leave off inspired and explore different options for
thinking about their next step - once the campaign is out in the open, what do they hope the
audience will do with that new information? Encourage them to continue to think forward, and
how they want their hashtag to leave a lasting impression in the minds of others.