When Twitter co-founders @ev and @BIZ developed the 140 character communication, did they or anyone else for that matter – have any sense that it could be a critical tool for those looking to reach out to the world for peace?
Did Facebook founder Matt Z know what his dorm-room idea may be in the realm of the historic global issues unfolding before us?
Social media as powerful as it is in business and commerce – is nothing compared to the sharing of information that is happening.
The gravity that comes with the communication occurring via youtube, twitter, facebook, blogs, and internet news sources is powerful to say the least.
When a mobile phone held by a supporter of a movement can report from their personal perspective, and their image, or ‘voice’ is multiplied many times over, across the globe, it is revolutionary on many levels.
To the degree that communication was shut down… and has become part of the story.
Social media in some ways is leading the story, not by bringing the origin of the thought or emotion, but by spreading those thoughts and emotions. And by its very nature, it is social, it is media, it is real time and it is global.
Has social media made it easier or more difficult for some organizations to help?
Will governments around the globe utilize social media tools in the communications?
Will further unrest build because of the communication flow occurring?
and will there be new tools developed because of the events we are witnessing?
One thing is for certain, social media or the tools that have become synonymous with it has roared onto the western landscape and is making its way across the globe in these very tense times.
I am a strong believer of shared information, and the activists who are putting their lives on the line are changing the way communication, political policy, internet use, news cycles and life itself is unfolding. And in the process are finding a voice they may never otherwise had and are changing the course of history.
