European Journal of Women’s Studies 2014, Vol. 21(4) 361–381 © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/1350506814541643 ejw.sagepub.com EJWS Between whisper and voice: Online women’s movement outreach in the UK and Germany Henrike Knappe Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities (KWI) Essen, Germany Sabine Lang University of Washington, USA Abstract Women’s movements in Western Europe are not dead, but they have altered their strategies in ways that require adaptation of investigative repertoires. Recent research highlights women’s movements’ pathways into institutions as well as the transnationalisation of activism. This article focuses on the shifting public communication repertoire associated with these developments. Communication and movement outreach across Europe are increasingly constituted online. The authors investigate the degree to which women’s networks in Germany and the UK mobilise constituencies via online means. Utilising network mapping tools as well as original data from women’s NGOs, they analyse the density and distribution of relationships in German and UK networks, as well as their interactive communication repertoires as indicators of their capacity to engage constituents. The findings show that information-focused means of communication are more prevalent than interactive mobilisation tools. Women’s NGOs in the UK utilise more public engagement features than those in Germany. The authors relate these findings to second-, third- and fourth-wave feminisms, focusing on their distinct mobilisation strategies. Keywords Europe, Germany, NGO networks, online activism, public sphere, UK, women’s movement Corresponding author: Henrike Knappe, Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities (KWI, Kulturwissenschaftliches Institut Essen), Goethestraße 31, 45128 Essen, Germany. Email: henrike.knappe@kwi-nrw.de 541643EJW 0 0 10.1177/1350506814541643European Journal of Women’s StudiesKnappe and Lang research-article 2014 Article