Social Media as a Tool for Political Change: The Uprising in Iran (2009) and Egypt (2011)

Abstract

The 2009 Iranian uprising and the 2011 Egyptian uprising were widely publicized and closely followed by the global community. Social media became central to the way each uprising was experienced, and social media made a major contribution to the way the revolutions were explained to the outside world. Scholars and journalists have praised the role of social media in these two situations; Evgeny Morozov referred to it as a “liberator of authoritarian regimes,” and arguing that “democracy is just a tweet away.” The uprisings were the result of a decade of social and political unrest and discontent among populations that were dissatisfied with their current regimes. In both cases, the effects of social media were undeniable catalyzing anger into protest over an authoritarian regime. Although it cannot be said that social media were the sole cause of these uprisings, social media did play a major role in bringing to the forefront a revolution that had been festering in the background for some time. This thesis examines the extent to which social media played a role in the political uprisings in Iran and Egypt. It considers the various types of social media, the effects of each one in the efforts to mobilize protesters, and the very different responses of the respective government regimes in Iran and Egypt.