Media and technology have played a powerful role in mobilizing protesters and exposing authoritarian rulers and regimes. Political consciousness and solidarity have given shape and strength to civil societies, making it increasingly difficult for recalcitrant establishments to go unchallenged.

The Egyptian people, who at times since January have seemed apathetic about the future of the revolution, have shown their determination to reclaim it. The people dying on Egypt's streets are fighting for the true conditions of a just society. Elections, which in Egypt always can be manipulated, cannot be trusted to deliver that goal.

With much of the country's media under the control of the state, bloggers have filled in the void -- often beating the traditional outlets to important stories on issues ranging from parking to high-level corruption. As online media's influence rises, it is also increasingly attracting the attention of the authorities.

CPD Director Philip Seib was keynote speaker at the Royal Irish Academy Conference for International Affairs 2011 on November 25 in Dublin.

Egypt's Kefaya ("Enough" in Arabic) movement was in many ways the forefather of the Arab uprising. It pioneered the use of social media, mastered the art of symbolic demonstrations, and pried open a space in the Egyptian media. This opening of closed regimes to raw information and opinion, a faith in the power of public ideas, was itself one of the key ideas underpinning the Arab uprisings.

...of course an important part of diplomacy is public diplomacy, so that is how our country internationally connects with ordinary people,” he said.... He noted there were lots of ways for the British government to connect with local citizens, but the most important way was online with the use of blogs and social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.

Voice of America’s Burmese Service is reporting a sharp increase in direct visits to its popular webpage since Burma’s government lifted firewall restrictions in September. Burmese Service Chief Than Lwin Htun says visits to VOA Burmese language social media sites, including Youtube and Twitter, have also increased.

The US Embassy in Jakarta has generated a fan base of 430,000 Indonesians with its two-year-old Facebook page. Embassy staffers have been operating the Facebook site as a base for public engagement, conversation, news, culture and tourism promotion.