Britain, US & Beyond Opinion: Has Occupy Lost the Attention of the "99%"?

Today in London, New York, and cities throughout the world, Occupy protesters hold a second Global Day of Action, marking the birth of the movement in Spain exactly one year ago. Following the first Day of Action on Saturday, the movement is promoting a "Global Spring" through a series of events this month.

If Occupy's goal was publicity, then Ssturday's march through London was a disappointment. Britain's major news networks did not cover the initial stages of the protest, only broadcasting live coverage when the police decided break up a small group who defied an order to leave the steps of the Royal Exchange building.

The British media showed a bit more interest in the mass marches in Spain, especially when they arrived in Madrid, as did news outlets in the United States. But a reader of the newspapers in America would have had little idea that Occupy Wall Street conducted its own day of action in Brooklyn. Even Occupy's natural allies in the US, liberal publications like The Nation, carried little mention of events in London or New York.

This neglect on the part of the so-called mainstream media to report on Occupy provoked the usual hand-wringing on the part of protesters that the establishment was purposefully ignoring them. While their complaints have some merit --- the police were completely over the top in their 'snatch squad' methods of trying to disperse a peaceful protest in London and deserve to be questioned by journalists --– the reality is that Occupy is struggling to regain the attention of the "99%" they claim to represent. It is not the BBC's job to make the news, but report it. If Occupy cannot make the news without the promotion of the mainstream media, that is their fault.

Since November, support for Occupy Wall Street has fallen dramatically in the US, even in New York City. The polling data is sparse, but nationwide Occupy gained the support of 16% of Americans in April, down from 29% in November. Only 49% of New Yorkers had a favourable opinion of the protests, a decline from nearly 60%.

To add to the bad news for Occupy, social media is not proving to be the revolutionary method of communication that observers and sympathisers of the Arab Spring had hoped. Livestream feeds of the London marches averaged only about 250 viewers, and judging from the chatrooms, most of those were regular participants at demonstrations who could not be present for this one. Twitter and Facebook were also used heavily to publicise the day of action, but there was little evidence that anyone other than a small circle of committed Occupiers were generating traffic.

That is the bad news for Occupy and its supporters. The good news is that Saturday witnessed an admirable display of energy and persistence by those who did march in London. Their message of social and economic equality might not have generated the level of public support they expected, but if sentiments do change, there is a creative vanguard ready to mobilise that increased attention. Despite repeated attempts by police to contain the march, and obstruct its progress, protesters managed to outwit them by running through and around their lines to reform at the Bank of England.

The Occupy story, if the commitment showed on Saturday is any indication, is not yet finished. But it will need to counter pessimism from within the movement, and derision without, and wait it out until the public catch up with their vision of a more equitable society.

Alternatively, Occupy could abandon their resistance to becoming involved in politics. Naysayers can mock their negligible impact so far this spring, but they cannot refute that last autumn Occupy helped push President Obama into a more populist tone of campaigning.

It is understandable that much of the anti-establishment enthusiasm running through Occupy stems from distrust of all politicians, but they could follow the example of Ron Paul's supporters and attempt to subvert a party from within while retaining their personal ideological consistency. Some commentators have mused upon the possibility that Occupy could play a similar role to the Tea Party and capture a minority in the Democratic Party. Perhaps, but they could be much more influential as a spoiler movement, harrying Democratic politicians to the Left.

Today, Occupy Wall Street plan a mass demonstration in Times Square. In London, there will be a gathering outside the British Banker's Association, while in Chicago Occupy and other groups continue to gather for this weekend's anti-NATO demonstrations. Don't be surprised if you hear little from these events, but that does not mean Occupy as a social movement is finished.