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Submitted
October 31, 2024
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October 21, 2025
Published
October 31, 2025
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Abstract

This research aims to examine how crisis information spreads on social media and leads to activism. The public perceives the Whitelab brand event, which collaborated with K-Pop idol Sehun, as fraught with issues. This has resulted in public protests and the emergence of the #whitelabapologize hashtag on Twitter. This qualitative research uses social network analysis (SNA) to understand the social network and actors surrounding the conversation. A total of 10,000 tweets using #whitelabapologize were extracted from Twitter using Netlytic on the crucial date of the event. The research results classify #whitelabapologize as hashtag activism. Individual actors and the fan bases of K-pop idols drive the conversations on this social network. The data also reveals that this activism follows the logic of connective action.

Keywords

Activism connective action Crisis public opinion

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Copyright (c) 2025 Rona Rizkhy Bunga Chasana, Dian Purworini, Riski Apriliani

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How to Cite
Chasana, R. R. B. ., Purworini, D. ., & Apriliani, R. . (2025). Crisis in digital era and brand sustainability: Analyzing the #whitelabapologize activism on social media. Jurnal Komunikasi, 19(3), 573–586. https://doi.org/10.20885/komunikasi.vol19.iss3.art9
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