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Contents Introduction Social Media Political Unrest Twitter Critics Social Media's Role Conclusion

For all that it does, social media is no “silver bullet” when it comes to political change. “The use of social media tools – text messaging, e-mail, photo-sharing, social network, and the like – does not have a single preordained outcome. Therefore attempts to outline their effects on political action are too often reduced to dueling anecdotes” (Shirky). Factors that seem to impact its successful use include the size, ethnic diversity, and education levels of the population, the existence of a modern telecommunications infrastructure, and the amount of censorship used by the existing regime. Social media has limited impact at best on an important factor affecting nascent revolutions – a regime’s willingness to use force to squelch protests. Egyptian protests grew because the Army would not turn against citizens engaged in peaceful protest. Iranian protests petered out when leaders used force to crack down on those speaking out, both in public and in the cybersphere.

A commemorative logo for the Arab Spring which began on the 18th of December 2010

Moving forward, “the activities of social movements will gain influence only to the extent that they are able to avoid the scrutiny and controls of the state. A challenge for improving the prospects of digitally-assisted political reform in closed societies that must rely on decentralized networks is to adapt, emulate and transfer the benefits of highly organized civil society groups, as bottom-up decentralized organizing is more likely to survive in repressive regimes.” (Etling).

Research suggests that protests, when effective, are the end of a process, rather than a replacement for it. Political freedom has to be accompanied by a society literate enough and densely connected enough to discuss the issues presented to the public (Shirky). “The real lesson is that the cyber-verse gives no side a decisive, unassailable advantage” (Carfano). For groups that have felt powerless against repressive regimes, social media’s technological leveling of the political playing field provides one of the most important components of any successful revolution – hope.

List of Visuals

1. Over one million protestors demonstrate in Cairo's Tahrir Square on 9 February, 2011, calling for the removal of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak.
   http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tahrir_Square_-_February_9,_2011.png
   Wikimedia Commons

2. A chart showing unique visitors to Twitter.com, monthly, in millions and by geographic region; the social networking site is growing globally.
   Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service, taken from ProQuest's eLibrary

3. Protest riots in front of the Parliament in Moldova following the 2009 parliamentary elections.
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Chisinau_riot_2009-04-07_01.jpg
   Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia

4. CNN coverage of the death of Iranian student Neda Agha-Soltan, who was shot by a sniper while standing on the street during a protest.
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XdfN_NoFviA&oref
   YouTube

5. Amateur footage of the self-immolation of Tunisian street vendor Mohammed Bouazizi, who burned himself in protest of the totalitarian Tunisian government.
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPOe1UPB8ro
   YouTube

6. An editorial cartoon by Carlos Latuff depicting a Khaled Said holding up a tiny, flailing version of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Said was beaten by police officers. Pictures of his badly altered body were posted on social media such as Facebook and became a catalyst for the movement that eventually led to the removal of Mubarak.
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Khaled_Mohamed_Saeed_holding_up_a_tiny,_flailing,_stone-faced_Hosni_Mubarak.png
   Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia

7. A 21 March 2006 demonstration held at October Square in Minsk after the Belarus president elections.
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Minsk_opposition_meeting_after_presidental_election_2.JPG
   Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia

8. A picture posted on Twitter's photo-sharing website TwitPic by the user madyar shows supporters of defeated Iranian presidential candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi taking part in a rally in Tehran on June 17, 2009. Iran's opposition held another rally and stepped up its challenge to the Islamic regime as the authorities intensified a crackdown on the media to try to contain the biggest crisis since the 1979 revolution.
   –/AFP/Getty Images, taken from ProQuest's eLibrary

9. A commemorative logo for the Arab Spring which began on the 18th of December 2010.
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spring.png
   Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia

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