Social media can work as the proverbial opiate of the masses, making people complicit with poor social conditions even while political action is organized across virtual communities. "To put it another way, all the Twitter posting, texting and Facebook wall-posting is great for organizing and spreading a message of protest, but it can also spread a message of caution, delay, confusion or, I don’t have time for all this politics, did you see what Lady Gaga is wearing?" Authoritarian governments have taken notice. Rather than cut Internet service outright, they have begun limiting bandwidth to restrict functionality.
>Contrary to popular wisdom, new research suggests that Egyptians were more inspired to take to the streets after Hosni Mubarak's government had cut access to social media. Yale researcher Navid Hassanpour asked, "How smart was the decision by the government of President Hosni Mubarak to completely shut down the Internet and cellphone service in the middle of the crucial protests in Tahrir Square?
>His conclusion was, not so smart, but not for the reasons you might think. 'Full connectivity in a social network sometimes can hinder collective action,' he writes."
what was the longest you've been without internet in last few years?
I think its a growing concern about how addicted we all are.
>>131299935
>Rather than cut Internet service outright, they have begun limiting bandwidth to restrict functionality.
They do that in canada. Poverty-tier internet is extremely limited. we cannot even click images on 4chan. too much kb usage.
>Contrary to popular wisdom, new research suggests that Egyptians were more inspired to take to the streets after Hosni Mubarak's government had cut access to social media
opium of the masses maybe they just revolted and backed any guy turning the internet back on, the eternal normie who called us geeks 20 years ago
>>131300238
i know that for me and similar people the internet acts as a substitute for real life socializing and communicating. the appeal is unrestricted speech. the drawback is a large gap growing between online life and real life. i have basically no real life existence anymore.