Really An Arab Communications Upheaval

Submitted by yonatan silverman (Israel), Jun 1, 2011 at 23:27

Was political repression and an absence of democratic freedoms the trigger behind the social unrest and calls for change in Tunisia, Syria, Libya and elsewhere in the Arab world? A desire for political freedom was probably an ingredient in the powder keg. But I believe the real trigger for what Prof. Pipes presciently calls the Arab Winter was the revolution in electronic communications that has swept the world for the last decade or more and finally penetrated the Arab world.

There have been wrenching human episodes in the Arab Winter such as that boy in Tunisia who burned himself alive. But such episodes took wing in Tunisia and elsewhere due to the proliferation of the electronic media now - internet world wide web Facebook the rest. The Arab world has been closed to innovations like communications because of the backwards dictatorial character of Islam. But for psychological reasons it would take many volumes to analyze even the Muslim Arab world could not immure itself to the communications revolution - the internet world wide web and facebook. The entry of communications in the Arab world became an orgy of exploitation.

Look at the Facebook Third Intifada business. Overnight hundreds of thousands of people were mobilized via Facebook to express their Arab desire to eliminate Israel. The communications media made this phenomenon possible. The communications media are a two edged sword. What is really underlying the Arab Winter? Is it a real political and social push for change or are the Arabs in Tunisia, Libya and Syria and elsewhere just drunk on the media and for want of nothing better at hand they have targeted their corrupt governments. I believe they will all sober up sooner or later and nothing will change. In fact in Egypt I believe it is likely the Muslim Brotherhood will get the upper hand and the stuff will hit the fan thanks to Facebook.

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