Protesters use social networks during Iran elections
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Iran’s election protesters and demonstrators took to Twitter and other social networking sites in the wake of the 2009 election to organize themselves and garner support for their cause. Though the situation precipitated out of the web, it was escalated and brought to mass media attention via the Internet.
Event list
The 30,000 to 40,000 people filling Haft-e Tir Square to protest the Iran election Wednesday seemed just a fraction to those taking to the Internet to do the same. While the human element remains an essential tool of social protest, technology’s power to usurp government censorship continues to evolve.
The U.S. State Department doesn't usually take an interest in the maintenance schedules of dotcom start-ups. But over the weekend, officials there reached out to Twitter and asked them to delay a network upgrade that was scheduled for Monday night.
Evgeny Morozov, blogger for Foreign Policy magazine and a fellow with Open Society Institute, was online Wednesday, June 17, at 3 p.m. ET to discuss the role of Twitter and other social-networking services and Web sites in coverage of the Iranian elections.
Disputed results for the election of the Iranian president triggered a wave of public protests in Iran. Extensive media coverage highlighted the role of social networking, both in helping organize activities and sharing the progress of events.