While the ultimate outcome in Egypt is undetermined, the unrest and the government's response to it have demonstrated once again the power of new media in moving masses and shaping events.
While it is comforting to believe that new media help tip the balance of power in favor of democracy, the reality is more complex. For every Tunisia, there is an Iran. Governments are anticipating the disruptive effects of new technology and disrupting them instead. Tools of liberation can just as easily be used as tools of oppression.
The popular narrative behind the events in Tunisia is that social networking tools such as Twitter and Facebook helped organize and accelerate unrest, unseating President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali after 23 years in office. Those flames were fanned by other new media platforms, such as YouTube and Al Jazeera, and have ignited protests elsewhere in the Arab world. That ability to inform and mobilize publics has spurred the belief that new technology inherently empowers individuals and is democratizing.