Since the launch of Facebook in 2004, social media use has skyrocketed. Facebook has more than 750 million active users, and sites like Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn and Flickr are quickly following Facebook and growing into cultural phenomenons. It is hard to imagine a day without sending a few tweets or writing on someone’s wall. Social media has become a crucial part of how we interact with our friends, community and even run our cities. Governments are starting to take serious notice and incorporate social media into their own day-to-day actions. With …
Since the rise in the use of new media, authoritarian regimes have been confronted by a wave of opposition. The surge of digital, computerized and networked information as well as communication technologies has facilitated those seeking to shed light on government oppression. Social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube as well as countless others have catalyzed protest movements in elections across the globe. From Iran, to Moldova and even local elections in Russia, the public has utilized these resources to shed light on fraud and abuse.
