Those readers who know me well may be surprised by this question, so let me explain. Five days a week, I attend a class with 7 fellow BYU students called "Issues class." It is taught by an Arabic professor, and it's a discussion in Modern Standard Arabic. And it is quite challenging, but that is a topic for another day.
Topics for discussion have included marriage, stereotypes about the Arab world and America, Jordanian food (and we had a potluck party with native food), the role of the press, tribal justice, Arab family structure, and the architecture of the University of Jordan, shown here:
Topics for discussion have included marriage, stereotypes about the Arab world and America, Jordanian food (and we had a potluck party with native food), the role of the press, tribal justice, Arab family structure, and the architecture of the University of Jordan, shown here:
This week's topic is the media, and we will be discussing Facebook's role in the Arab Spring, among other things. And we are supposed to collect feedback to bring to our discussion, so all of your comments are appreciated. Here is the question:
Does Facebook have a role in political change?
I don't know about political change, but I think it aids in political discussion as well as political campaigning. It also might instigate more political "research" when a political topics are brought up by friends and family. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI think so. If people know that other people feel the same way as them, it creates a sense of empowerment. Also, Facebook facilitates grouping people together and makes staying in touch easier which is necessary for any major political movement.
ReplyDeleteIt's positive that people have an outlet to express opinions. There is no doubt that FB has the potential to facilitate organization, and occasionally serves that purpose.
ReplyDeleteHowever, the influence of Facebook, and other social media, often seems to be overemphasized by the media. Many well intentioned individuals seem to view Facebook as a substitute for meaningful engagement, carefully considered positions, and genuine effort. Often, Facebook is just an echo chamber for like-minded discourse.
That is definitely a danger in our rapidly-expanding media world: the more a person's media options increase, the more they options they have to just listen to their own opinions played back to them. Fox News is the textbook example, of course.
ReplyDeleteIn a way, though, that could facilitate political change (not necessarily a positive thing)--when a group of discontented people who always thought they were alone in their opinions suddenly find friends, they might decide to act.