2025/08/23 by Dinfin Mulupi, Shannon Scovel, Frankie Ho Chun Wong +1 · 1 voice
Social Sciences · #Social Media and Politics #Sport and Mega-Event Impacts #Sports, Gender, and Society
paper · doi:10.1177/21674795251366968
openalex publication_date 2025/08/23 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
Using intersectionality and critical disability studies, this paper analyzes social media discourse from X and Instagram during the 2024 Paris Paralympics. Qualitative ( n = 1,000) and computational quantitative analysis ( n = 10,881) of social media comments posted during the Games show that the largest percentage of social media commentators discussing the Paralympics came from India, with users frequently evoking notions of nationalism, neoliberal-ableism, athlete-first accolades, and complex notions of gender identity. Findings demonstrate the contradictions of social media as a platform for social change. On one hand social media commentators portrayed disabled athletes as skilled and accomplished Paralympians and framed them as national heroes bringing pride to their country. On the other hand, they also engaged in neoliberal-ableist narratives characterizing disability as something that should be overcome.