What the Iranian Government Can Learn from Social Media

By Ethan Lyon, Senior Writer

The Iranian government is cracking down on the dissemination of “tension creating” information within its borders (aka news about the political strife following presidential elections). Blocking TV channels and social media sites has only inflamed the President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad opposition.

Social media is a great platform for spreading information and sharing ideas across a far-reaching network of users. For those who suffer negative buzz from social media, the first instinct may be to exert control to eliminate the conversation. However, on passion point topics, such as the disputed Iranian election, empowered people stand up to share their voice.  Social media cannot be silenced.  Indeed, images, video and text messages are circumventing Iranian censors and allowing the world a glimpse into the political tension within the democratic country. Attempts to silence the conversation only gives fodder to the opposition.

The Internet has made it tremendously difficult to curb the spread of information. Repressive political regimes struggle to control the flow of news and ideas as savvy digital activists find loop-holes in governments efforts. Social media allows for healthy debates and meaningful discussions amongst opposing user philosophies, and may even have the ability to keep despotic regimes in check. Social media creates transparency, which we’ve covered in Sparxoo’s Real Deal trend. As information becomes more accessible through the Internet and smart phone technology, transparency is becoming more difficult to curtail. With hundreds of thousands of image-capturing, text messaging Iranians, the government is challenged by a legion of amateur “street reporters.” Citizen journalists, equipped with an all-in-one media recording devices, are disseminating unfettered information to the international community via the world wide web.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s regime is trying to gain a stranglehold on the media coverage within the country, particularly in Tehran—the hotbed of opposition protests. Traditional methods of lowering the volume—typically through denying journalists access—has had the opposite intended effect. Denying journalists access to information and blocking social media sites such as Twitter, has amplified international concern. Furthermore, NPR reports, BBC’s Persian TV channel has been jammed within Iranian borders.

Instead of engaging in a meaningful conversation, the Iranian government is trying to silence it. They are learning the hard way that they no longer have a monopoly in disseminating messages.  Even though Iran has blocked Twitter.com, there are so many APIs that integrate the Twitter structure into different products, it’s nearly impossible to silence them all. In the era of social media, the best response might be a persuasive message that addresses questions and resonates with  national and international communities. That message must also stand the test of transparency. We wonder what would happen if the current regime were to engage with the opposition and attempt to show they have have an open and strong platform. In the era of social media, users and voters are empowered to evaluate their options, make informed decisions, and tell others.  Social media has changed the rules for those who seek to suffocate opposing voices.

Photo by Davide Guglielmo from Stock.Xchng

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