When I first signed up to facebook not once did I think that this measly social networking site could be the primary organisational tool to start massive political revolutions. However during the time named 'The Arab Spring' this was exactly the case. Facebook and twitter were used to effectively gain immediate participation in protests against the governements of countries such as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. It all began with our good old friend Julian Assange's site wikileaks. Wikileaks broadcasted documents revealing governmental corruption in the small country Tunisia. From there a street vendor set himself on fire in protest of the treatment he received by city officials. From there the country erupted is mass demonstrations against the government. Citizen journalists were posting footage and other material of the protest on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter to show the world what had become of this country. In response the government blocked internet access but by the use of smart phones was unsuccessful so instead they stole the citizens passwords for social networking sites and deleted groups. Luckily tech personnel from all the sites quickly fixed this by developing a way that the citizens could text their tweets to a certain number and they would automatically be seen on these sites. From there like the good old 'domino affect' we learned about in high school history class this wave of revolution swept over neighbouring countries, and one by one the leaders of these countries fell.
The internet has political potential, like in the e-democracy reading governments should be aware of the internet and the power of social networking sites. These sites allow civic involvement, participation, openness and fast immobilisation. So I believe if any government had half a brain, they would advertise and put political propaganda on these particular sites, it would help with popularity and maybe the younger generation will become more aware and care more about politics.
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