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1. Digital Activism and Authoritarian Adaptation in the Middle East

Author:
Larry Diamond, Eileen Donahoe, Ahmed Shaheed, Benjamin Greenacre, James Shires, Alexei Abrahams, Joshua Tucker, Xiao Qiang, Marwa Fatafta, Andrew Leber, Alexei Abrahams, Marc Owen Jones, Afef Abroughi, Mohamed Najem, Mahsa Alimardani, Mona Elswah, Alexandra A. Siegel, H. Akin Unver, Ahmet Kurnaz, Anita Gohdes, and Zachary Steinert-Threlkeld
Publication Date:
08-2021
Content Type:
Research Paper
Institution:
Project on Middle East Political Science (POMEPS)
Abstract:
The Project on Middle East Political Science partnered with Stanford University’s Center for Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law and its Global Digital Policy Incubator for an innovative two week online seminar to explore the issues surrounding digital activism and authoritarianism. This workshop was built upon more than a decade of our collaboration on issues related to the internet and politics in the Middle East, beginning in 2011 with a series of workshops in the “Blogs and Bullets” project supported by the United States Institute for Peace and the PeaceTech Lab. This new collaboration brought together more than a dozen scholars and practitioners with deep experience in digital policy and activism, some focused on the Middle East and others offering a global and comparative perspective. POMEPS STUDIES 43 collects essays from that workshop, shaped by two weeks of public and private discussion.
Topic:
Security, Civil War, Government, Human Rights, Science and Technology, Infrastructure, Authoritarianism, Political Activism, Democracy, Media, Inequality, Social Media, Surveillance, Borders, Digital Culture, and Cyberspace
Political Geography:
Russia, China, Middle East, and North Africa

2. Politics and Social Media in the Middle East and North Africa: Trends and Trust in Online Information

Author:
Jason Wee and Sophie Li
Publication Date:
10-2019
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Arab Barometer
Abstract:
Political interest has decreased and plateaued post-Arab Spring in the Middle East and North Africa, possibly due to political fatigue. Moving from 2006-2013 to 2016-2018, citizens reporting interest in politics has decreased by 11 points. In spite of this, MENA citizens are more informed about political events in their countries relative to their interest in politics. Those with higher education were more likely to be politically informed and interested, but no consistent trend was found across age groups. • Across MENA, citizens have been consistently finding politics too complicated (74 percent in 2018). Besides highly educated Egyptians and Kuwaitis who had greater ease in navigating politics, only minor dierences were observed across years, education levels and age groups. • Almost all MENA Internet users use social media for at least 2 hours a day, with nearly half of them being heavy users. Facebook has the largest and widest spread of users, capturing 74 percent of the region’s Internet users. • Social media has captured a significant share of the political information market, with 36 percent of MENA citizens citing social media as their primary source of information for breaking news. Five-in-ten of both youth and those with higher education preferred using social media to tune into political events. Greater trust in social media over traditional media var-ied greatly across countries, potentially due to the dierences in level of statecontrol of the latter. • Overall, these findings from nationally representative public opinion surveys carried out by the Arab Barometer carry important implications for the future use of social media in mobilizing Arab citizens in political causes.
Topic:
Internet, Social Media, Arab Spring, Digital Culture, Digital Policy, and Information Technology
Political Geography:
Middle East and North Africa

3. Iran's New Social Media Friendly Approach

Author:
Mojtaba Barghandan
Publication Date:
06-2015
Content Type:
Journal Article
Institution:
ARI Movement
Abstract:
The Islamic Republic of Iran entered into a new era of public diplomacy following Hassan Rouhani’s victory in the June 2013 presidential election. Iran seeks both to revitalize its soft power tools and reach out to the international community through a more moderate, tolerant, and open dialogue policy. Digital diplomacy and social media have become increasingly important to this end. The author expounds on the new administration’s social-media friendly approach to fulfilling its foreign policy goals, in addition to taking stock of the soft power initiatives undertaken by international actors, and the possible obstacles for Iran in employing these same methods.
Topic:
Diplomacy, Media, Social Media, and Digital Culture
Political Geography:
Iran and Middle East