Over the past couple of years, the term “slacktivist” has resurfaced as a way to describe people who see themselves as activists and want to feel good about making a difference, but aren’t actually willing to get out of their chairs for causes they support. Social media hashtag campaigns have been particularly singled out by critics, who claim that sticking a catchphrase on the end of a status update or tweet doesn’t help make any progress toward curing diseases, ending political crises, or fixing social injustice.

It could be argued, however, that it’s actually the blanket knee-jerk criticism of hashtag activism that’s not helping, and that in an age where most of us do get a lot done from behind a computer screen, perhaps it’s worth looking at the hashtag activism trend in a little more depth, rather than casually dismissing it as useless.

Awareness and Strength in Numbers

There are lots of arguments both for and against hashtag activism, but by far the biggest one in the “pro” column is awareness. Critics have pointed out that awareness doesn’t pay the bills when it comes to things like medical research, but at least with some hashtag campaigns, it seems that sheer numbers of people becoming aware of a campaign can indeed boost fundraising, and not by small amounts.

The biggest argument for hashtag activism is awareness

Earlier this year, for example, the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went mega-viral in a very short period of time, and even though some complained that dumping ice water on one’s head wouldn’t make a difference to fighting the disease, the ALS foundation itself and individual ALS sufferers disagreed.

They had the numbers to back it up, too – in the United States alone, the ALS association reported $100 million in additional funding thanks to the challenge. Considering that the Association made $19.8 million total in 2013, the difference the campaign made was certainly significant.

One of the arguments in the “con” column is that although a message can spread quickly through a hashtag, misinformation can spread, as well. In fact, oversimplifying a message to the point where important facts are left out is one of the very reasons that hashtags go viral – it’s a simple, do-good message in a nice, neat package. Of course, the reality of a situation can be much different. For example, when a group of Nigerian schoolgirls was abducted this spring, the #BringBackOurGirls hashtag went viral almost immediately.

One of the arguments in the “con” column is that misinformation can spread as well

It seems like a no-brainer in terms of people getting on board, but some Nigerians felt slighted at how the hashtag and it’s simplified message turned a serious sociopolitical issue into a sentimental bandwagon in which most of the participants did not really understand the full implications of what they were “campaigning” for.

The Evolution of the Social Hashtag

So although hashtags certainly can be used for good, there’s still a lot left to fix if we want this trend to be doing little-to-no harm at the same time. As with any other online phenomenon, usage of hashtags has evolved over time, and will continue to do so. Weeks and months pass, while people and organizations find different ways to use the social tools available to them.

Sometimes the results are astounding right out of the box; other times it becomes obvious that some work needs to be done. So although usage of hashtags for social good certainly isn’t perfect at the moment, that’s just the situation right now. As the Ice Bucket Challenge clearly showed, sometimes a campaign that seems like slacktivism gone wild can snowball into something that is actually a force for good. We just need to figure out how to work on some of the problems while keeping the good and powerful aspects of hashtagging strong.

Clearly one of the ways that hashtag activism could improve would be tighter controls on truth, but this is much larger than a hashtag problem – it’s an internet problem in general. As with most information distribution, personal responsibility for one’s own education is key.

Sometimes a campaign that seems like slacktivism gone wild can snowball into something that is actually a force for good

Gone are the days when all of our media came from television and newspapers, where we had little choice but to accept what we were told, and at least some confidence that the information was true.

Now, anyone with an internet connection can spread rumors, half-truths, and outright lies, and just like the “telephone” game we played as schoolchildren, the message usually gets exaggerated and twisted as it passes from person to person. Sites like snopes.com can definitely help sort the true from the false, but getting people to check these sites before they pass on misinformation can be an uphill struggle.

In short, we have a long way to go when it comes to getting this online activism thing right, but the fact that we are trying (even while remaining seated) is most likely a good thing overall. As sociologist Zeynep Tüfekçi points out, “hashtags can and do generate attention, and attention has never been powerless.” We just need to fine-tune what we do with that power.