Peran Media Sosial dalam Praktik Cancel Culture: Analisis Respons Pengguna Tiktok Kepada Kasus DJ Panda

Abstract

Advances in digital technology have shifted the function of social media into a new public space where collective opinion formation occurs rapidly and massively. One emerging phenomenon is cancel culture, a form of social judgment based on digital interactions. This study aims to analyze TikTok users' responses to the DJ Panda influencer case and understand how these interactions reflect social media's dual role as a space for public criticism and judgment. This research uses a qualitative approach with a case study method. Data collection was conducted through virtual observation of content, comments, stitch features, and reposts on related videos, as well as in-depth interviews with TikTok users who actively interacted with the case. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis techniques through the stages of data reduction, coding, categorization, and meaning extraction. The analytical framework is based on George Herbert Mead's Symbolic Interactionism Theory and Howard S. Becker's Labeling Theory. The results show that netizen responses are dominated by emotional and rapid judgments without factual verification, which are reinforced by symbolic interactions between users. This phenomenon forms a mob mentality and social labeling practices that lead to stigmatization and cyberbullying. These findings emphasize the paradox of the digital public space as a means of social control and a potentially toxic space