Structured Response 11/13/12

         The revolts of 2011 have for sure been sold as having been based on new social media. Whether this is done primarily as some idealistic outreach to the youth of the world or is based on fact is up for debate. For myself I tend to believe the impact of social media on the 2011 revolutions is certainly palpable.
        What first needs to be examined is the role that social media played in these revolutions. It can be best summed up in the visual that "people protesting had a rock in one hand and a cell phone in the other" (Axford 684). In countries where large sections of the youth protesting had grown up in a more westernized culture than preceding generations, thanks in large part to the economic liberalization policies enacted by the sultanistic authoritarian regimes that wished to maintain their power by expanding college access (Goldstone), the power of the cell phone and communication cannot be underestimated. Indeed one of the symbolic starting points of the protests was Mohammed Bouazizi's self-immolation, which would not have gained any attention if it had not been captured on video and posted to facebook (Khandker 677). The increase of social media also served to promote transparency in the governments, and encourage protestors to fight for such transparency (Eisenlohr 127. It also served to help build networks of trust that are key for large numbers of stranger to work together and place their lives in one and other's hands as they strive for a common goal (Eisenlohr 133). In these views, one can plainly see the great import of social media on the recent revolutions.
      Another question that can prove this point is what would've been different without social media. It is hard to definitively prove a negative, or a "what if" question but some speculation can be allowed with a certain reflection upon events. One of the largest activities that aided these revolts was cyberactivism (Khandker 678), without this there would have been no way to "counter the culture of fear" (Eisenlohr 128) that proved such a crucial aspect for the success of the 2011 revolts. Without social media it can be therefore assumed that this culture of fear would have been a lot harder to combat, the protestors would have come out in smaller numbers, the response by the government would have been bloodier, more targeted and thus more effective, and the protests would have been as a result less successful overall. Finally there is the element of reconstruction that can take at least half a decade by some accounts (Goldstone), this five year countdown cannot even being without the protests first being successful so obviously if the protests were delayed or stalled the recovery would've been similarly stalled.
       Finally there is the idea of whether or not social media was a necessary factor for the revolutions. I believe they were key, though some might disagree and argue that regardless of the events that brought us here, it is the military interim governments that will ultimately decide the outcomes (Axford 685). I however tend to think that the power (strengthened by the economic logic, in Egypt and Tunisia at least  of keeping up the heavily invested internet running through the protests (Axford 683) of the new social media can be historically compared as similar to the "print capitalism" (Khundker 678) that was so crucial to the French Revolution.
       In analyzing these three notions it can be definitively said I believe that social media played a considerable role in the 2011 revolts in the MENA region.