Architecture, humanitarianism and social media

This essay examines the representation of bodies, spaces, and architecture in humanitarian crises through social media content from over 200 accounts, contrasting the narratives of international organizations and celebrities with those of local institutions and civilians. Focusing on 13 geographies marked by violence, conflict, and displacement—from Ukraine and South Sudan to the Darién Gap and Bangladesh—it explores how social media reshapes the public’s relationship with humanitarianism in two opposing yet intertwined ways. First, through the distancing of attention, as remote crises are consumed via scrolling, likes, and comments. Second, through digital intimacy, as smartphones cultivate mediatized empathy by bringing viewers closer to victims’ embodied experiences. This shift foregrounds bodies in space as expressions of suffering, relief, or resistance, revealing architecture as an active participant rather than a neutral backdrop. Meanwhile, algorithms act as gatekeepers, privileging standardized, visually compelling imagery over diverse realities.