Much has been written about the impact of new technologies on democracy movements that have swept the Arab world. Now on the Freedom...
Much has been written about the impact of new technologies on democracy movements that have swept the Arab world. Now on the Freedom Collection, hear firsthand from one of the field’s pioneers about the influence of blogs and social media. Mahmoud Salem, a young Egyptian, became one of his country’s best known and most influential bloggers and cyberactivists. Mahmoud turned to new technology out of frustration and anger towards the Mubarak government’s lack of action on problems like terrorism and sexual harassment. As the demonstrations began in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, Mahmoud and other activists filled a key role in communicating the goals of Egypt’s democracy movement. Mahmoud describes his motivation for joining the protests, saying, “You continue fighting this fight because you realize that, if the government has already done everything that they could to strike fear in you, then what else is there to do?” Watch the interview with Mahmoud Salem here. This post was written by Lindsay Lloyd, Program Director of the Freedom Collection.
