RE: Social Media

The role of social media played an important role during the Arab revolts of 2011, and is an important tool for just about any revolt in the twenty-first century. The use of Twitter and Facebook is an easy way to spread the message to a large audience all at once, and especially to a generation very involved in social media. Without social media, it is very plausible that the revolution would not have been as big as it was. Social media is an easy way to rally support and get large numbers to come to events such as protests. Social media, depending on the poster, can be a very honest and raw and show the public images and stories the news cannot. Especially in countries where the news is heavily censored, social media is an outlet to post whatever you want. Social media may not have been a necessary factor in order for the revolution to happen, but it certainly helped rally the support of the younger generation especially. The revolution most likely would have happened out of just desperation in Egypt, but without social media, organizing such protests would have been much more difficult and a lot smaller in numbers, potentially leading the revolts to fail.