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TextingTowardUtopia
DoestheInternetspreaddemocracy?
EvgenyMorozov
March 01, 2009

In1989RonaldReaganproclaimedthatTheGoliathoftotalitarianismwillbebroughtdownbythe
Davidofthemicrochiplater,BillClintoncomparedInternetcensorshiptotryingtonailJellOto
thewallandin1999GeorgeW.Bush(notJohnLennon)askedustoimagineiftheInternettookhold
inChina.Imaginehowfreedomwouldspread.
Suchstarryeyedcyberoptimismsuggestedanewformoftechnologicaldeterminismaccordingto
whichtheInternetwouldbethehammertonailallglobalproblems,fromeconomicdevelopmentin
AfricatothreatsoftransnationalterrorismintheMiddleEast.EvensoshrewdanoperatorasRupert
Murdochyieldedtothedigitaltemptation:Advancesinthetechnologyoftelecommunicationshave
provedanunambiguousthreattototalitarianregimeseverywhere,heclaimed.Soonafter,Murdoch
boweddowntotheChineseauthorities,whothreatenedhisregionalsatelliteTVbusinessinresponse
tothisheadlinegrabbingstatement.
Someanalystsdidnotjumponthebandwagon.Therestrainedtoneofone2003reportstoodin
markedcontrasttoprevailingcyberoptimism.TheCarnegieEndowmentforInternationalPeaces,
OpenNetworks,ClosedRegimes:TheImpactoftheInternetonAuthoritarianRule,warned:Rather
thansoundingthedeathknellforauthoritarianism,theglobaldiffusionoftheInternetpresentsboth
opportunityandchallengeforauthoritarianregimes.SurveyingdiverseregimesfromSingaporeto
Cuba,thereportconcludedthatthepoliticalimpactoftheInternetwouldvarywithacountryssocial
andeconomiccircumstances,itspoliticalculture,andthepeculiaritiesofitsnationalInternet
infrastructure.
CarnegiesreportappearedinthepreYouTube,Facebook,MySpacedarkness,soitwaseasyto
overlooktherapidlyfallingcostsofselfpublishingandcoordinationandtheimplicationsforonline
interactionandcollaboration,frompoliticalnetworkingtoWikipedia.Stillharderwastopredictthe
potentialeffectoftheInternetandmobiletechnologyoneconomicdevelopmentintheworldspoorest
regions,wheretheycurrentlyprovidemuchneededbankinginfrastructure(forexample,byusing
unspentaircreditonmobilephonesascurrency),createnewmarkets,introduceeducational
opportunities,andhelptospreadinformationaboutpreventionandtreatmentofdiseases.Andhopes
remainthatthefruitsoffastereconomicdevelopment,bornofnewinformationtechnologies,might
alsobegoodfordemocracy.
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Itisthustemptingtoembracetheearliercyberoptimism,tracethesuccessofmanypoliticaland
democraticinitiativesaroundtheglobetothecomingofWeb2.0,anddismissthemisgivingsofthe
Carnegiereport.CoulditbethatchangesintheWeboverthepastsixyearsespeciallytheriseof
socialnetworking,blogging,andvideoandphotosharingrepresentthefloweringoftheInternets
democratizingpotential?ThisthesisseemstoexplainthedynamicsofcurrentInternetcensorship:
sitesthatfeatureusergeneratedcontentFacebook,YouTube,Bloggerareespeciallyunpopular
withauthoritarianregimes.Anumberofacademicandpopularbooksonthesubjectpointtonothing
shortofarevolution,bothinpoliticsandinformation(see,forexample,AntonyLoewensteinsThe
BloggingRevolutionorElizabethHansonsTheInformationRevolutionandWorldPolitics,both
publishedlastyear).Werethecyberoptimistsrightafterall?DoestheInternetspreadfreedom?
Theanswertothisquestionsubstantiallydependsonhowwemeasurefreedom.Itissafetosaythat
theInternethassignificantlychangedtheflowofinformationinandoutofauthoritarianstates.While
Internetcensorshipremainsathornyissueand,unfortunately,morewidespreadthanitwasin2003,it
ishardtoignorethewealthofdigitalcontentthathassuddenlybecomeavailabletomillionsof
Chinese,Iranians,orEgyptians.IfanythingthespeedandeaseofInternetpublishinghavemademany
previousmodesofsamizdatobsoletetheemerginggenerationofdissidentsmayaswellchoose
FacebookandYouTubeastheirheadquartersandiTunesandWikipediaastheirclassrooms.
Manysuchdissentershave,indeed,madegreatuseoftheWeb.InUkraineyoungactivistsreliedon
newmediatechnologiestomobilizesupportersduringtheOrangeRevolution.Colombianprotesters
usedFacebooktoorganizemassiveralliesagainstFARC,theleftistguerrillas.Theshockingand
powerfulpicturesthatsurfacedfromBurmaduringthe2007antigovernmentprotestsmanyofthem
shotbylocalbloggerswithcellphonesquicklytraveledaroundtheglobe.Democraticactivistsin
RobertMugabesZimbabweusedtheWebtotrackvoterigginginlastyearselectionsandusedmobile
phonestotakephotosofelectionresultsthatweretemporarilydisplayedoutsidethevotingbooths
(later,ausefulproofoftheirregularities).PlentyofotherexamplesfromIran,Egypt,Russia,
Belarus,and,aboveall,Chinaattesttothegrowingimportanceoftechnologyinfacilitatingdissent.

Regimechangetextmeagingmaeem
realiticincerpace,utnodictatorhave
eentoppledviaecondLife.
ButdrawingconclusionsaboutthedemocratizingnatureoftheInternetmaystillbepremature.The
majorchallengeinunderstandingtherelationshipbetweendemocracyandtheInternetasidefrom
developinggoodmeasuresofdemocraticimprovementhasbeentodistinguishcauseandeffect.That
isalwayshard,butitisespeciallydifficultinthiscasebecausethegrandiosepromiseoftechnological
determinismtheidealisticbeliefintheInternetstransformativepowerhasoftenblindedeventhe
mostsoberanalysts.
ConsidertheargumentsthatascribeBarackObamaselectoralsuccess,inpart,tohisteamsmasteryof
databases,onlinefundraising,andsocialnetworking.Obamasuseofnewmediaisboundtobethe
subjectofmanyarticlesandbooks.Buttoclaimtheprimacyoftechnologyoverpoliticswouldbeto
disregardObamaslargerthanlifecharisma,thelegacyofthestunninglyunpopularBush
administration,theramificationsoftheglobalfinancialcrisis,andJohnMcCainschoiceofSarahPalin
asarunningmate.DespitethecampaignsconsiderableWebsavvy,onecannotgrantmuchlegitimacy
totheargumentthatitearnedObamahisvictory.

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Yet,weareseeminglywillingtoresorttosuchtechnologicaldeterminismintheinternationalcontext.
Forexample,discussionsoftheOrangeRevolutionhaveassignedaparticularlyimportantroletotext
messaging.Thisishowa2007researchpaper,TheRoleofDigitalNetworkedTechnologiesinthe
UkrainianOrangeRevolution,byHarvardsBerkmanCenterforInternetandSocietydescribedthe
impactoftextmessaging,orSMS:
BySeptember2004,Pora[theoppositionsyouthmovement]hadcreatedaseriesofstablepolitical
networksthroughoutthecountry,including150mobilegroupsresponsibleforspreadinginformation
andcoordinatingelectionmonitoring,with72regionalcentersandover30,000registered
participants.Mobilephonesplayedanimportantroleforthismobilefleetofactivists.Poraspost
electionreportstates,asystemofimmediatedisseminationofinformationbySMSwasputinplace
andprovedtobeimportant.

Suchmobilizationmayindeedhavebeenimportantinthefinaleffort.Butitismisleadingtoimply,as
somerecentstudiesbyBerkmanstaffhave,thattheOrangeRevolutionwastheworkofasasmart
mobatermintroducedbythecriticHowardRheingoldtodescribeselfstructuringandemerging
socialorganizationfacilitatedbytechnology.Tofocussosingularlyonthetechnologyistoglossover
thebrutalattemptstofalsifytheresultsofthepresidentialelectionsthattriggeredtheprotests,the
twoweeksthatprotestersspentstandinginthefreezingNovemberair,orthemillionsofdollars
pumpedintotheUkrainandemocraticforcestomakethoseprotestshappeninthefirstplace.Regime
changebytextmessagingmayseemrealisticincyberspace,butnodictatorshavebeentoppledvia
SecondLife,andnorealelectionshavebeenwonthereeitherotherwise,RonPaulwouldbepresident.
Tobesure,technologyhasaroleinglobalcauses.Inadditiontothetoolsofdirectcommunicationand
collaborationnowavailable,theproliferationofgeospatialdataandcheapandaccessiblesatellite
imagery,alongwiththearrivalofuserfriendlybrowserslikeGoogleEarth,hasfundamentally
transformedtheworkofspecializedNGOshelpedtostartmanynewonesandallowed,forexample,
reallifetrackingofdeforestationandillegallogging.Evenindigenouspopulationspreviouslyshutoff
fromtechnologicalinnovationshavetakenadvantageofonlinetools.
Moreimportantly,thetectonicshiftsintheeconomicsofactivismhaveallowedlargenumbersof
unaffiliatedindividualactivists(someofthemtoilingparttimeorevenfreelancing)tocontributeto
numerousefforts.AsClayShirkyarguesinHereComesEverybody:OrganizingWithout
Organizations,thenewgenerationofprotestsismuchmoreadhoc,spontaneous,andinstantaneous
(anotherallusiontoRheingoldssmartmobs).Technologyenablesgroupstocapitalizeondifferent
levelsofengagementamongactivists.OperatingonWikipediaseverycommacountsethos,ithas
finallybecomepossibletoharvesttheenergyofbothactiveandpassivecontributors.Now,evena
forwardedemailcounts.Suchnanoactivismmattersintheaggregate.
SotheInternetismakinggroupandindividualactioncheaper,faster,leaner.Butlogisticsarenotthe
onlydeterminantofcivicengagement.WhatistheimpactoftheInternetonourincentivestoact?This
questionisparticularlyimportantinthecontextofauthoritarianstates,whereelectionsand
opportunitiesforspontaneous,collectiveactionarerare.Theanswerdepends,toalargeextent,on
whethertheInternetfostersaneagernesstoactonnewlyacquiredinformation.WhethertheInternet
augmentsordampensthiseagernessisbothcriticalandundetermined.

TheInternetmakeiteaierforutofindand
joingroupthatwealreadagreewith,which
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might,inturn,makeourviewevenmore
extreme.
Somearguethatcitizenaccesstopublicdocumentsthatmightrevealcorruptionandfraud(SECfilings,
taxreturnsofelectedofficials,disclosuresaboutmajorcampaigncontributions,etc.)willspurcitizen
action.Thechiefproponentsofsuchradicaltransparencyaretechnologypioneerslike
public.resource.orgsCarlMalamudintheUnitedStatesandmySocietysTomSteinbergintheUnited
Kingdom.Similarlogicthatopendatahelpstoexposeabusesofpoweror,asJusticeBrandeissaid,
thatsunlightisthebestdisinfectantguidestheworkoftheSunlightFoundationintheUnitedStates
andsmalleroutfitselsewhere,includingMzalendo,aWebsiteandvotingdatabasetrackingKenyan
MinistersofParliament,andFairPlayAlliance,acomparablesiteinSlovakia.
TherearealsositeslikeWikileaks,whichhostallsortsofcontroversialmaterials,fromalistofWeb
sitescensoredbytheThaigovernmenttoacopyoftheHumanTerrainTeamHandbookoftheU.S.
military.Oncesuchdocumentshavebeenleaked,thesesitescontend,itmakesmoresensetoopen
themtopublicviewthanleavetheirpublicationtochance.(Wikileaksalsoseemstohaveacquired
lethalpowers:theCEOofJuliusBaer,aSwissbankthatwasimplicatedincorruptionthanksto
documentshostedonWikileaks,hasrecentlydiedofmysteriouscauses,mostprobablysuicide.)The
premisethatprovidingaccesstoinformationandfosteringthenormoftransparencycouldspeedup
democratizationunderpinstheirwork.HereishowWikileaksdescribesitsmission:
Allgovernmentscanbenefitfromincreasedscrutinybytheworldcommunity,aswellastheirown
people.Webelievethisscrutinyrequiresinformation.Historicallythatinformationhasbeencostly
intermsofhumanlifeandhumanrights.Butwithtechnologicaladvancestheinternet,[sic]and
cryptographytherisksofconveyingimportantinformationcanbelowered.

OnecouldapplaudtheorganizersofWikileaksfortheirperseverancealone(theyclaimtohave
receivedmorethan1.2milliondocumentsfromdissidentandanonymoussources).Yetthesuccessof
suchcampaignsbothindemocraciesandauthoritarianstatesmightbelimited.Theexistenceof
documentationdoesnotensureaparticularoutcome.AstheMadoffsagahasrevealed,evenpublicly
availablefilingswiththeSECmightexposelessthanwethink.Andmakingsenseof1.2million
documentsuploadedtoWikileakswilltaketime,effort,andalargecontingentofinvestigative
journalists.
Furthermore,notallcrimesaredocumentedinwaysthatcanbecategorized,digitized,andputonline.
AsMishaGlennyarguesinhisbrilliantnewbookMcMafia,moderncrimeissoglobalized,entangled,
andhardtodocumentandcontainwithinnationalborders,thatidentifyingcoconspiratorsmightbe
impossible.Forexample,itishardtoimaginethattheSudanesegovernmentretainsextensive
bookkeepingonitspossiblyillegalarmspurchases.Buteveniftheydoandthesedocumentssuddenly
becomepublicwhatarethechancesthattheywilligniteseriousprotest?Judgingbytheuneventful
publicationofmuchharderevidence,includingsightingsofuncharteredshipscarryingrealweapons,
anoutcryisunlikely,andthereasonshavelesstodowithTwitterorFacebookthanthefactthatpeople
canhavelotsofinformationandverylittlepowertoactonit.
OthersarguethattheInternetexposestheotherwisebrainwashedcitizensofauthoritarian
governmentstocompetinganddissentingviewsabouttheirgovernments.Thishelpsthemdevelopa
differentworldviewand,potentially,aspirationsfordemocraticchange.Thisispossible,eventhoughit
mightbehardtofindacountrysave,perhaps,forNorthKoreaorTurkmenistanwherecitizenshave
notyetheardwhytheirgovernmentsarebad:thisis,afterall,whatoldmendiscussinpubs.Wealso

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cannotassumethatpeoplewillseekoutinformationtheydonotagreewithorsimplydonotknow
about.
Moreover,countingontheInternettoperformthisfunctionriskswhatCassSunstein,recently
appointedheadoftheWhiteHousesOfficeofInformationandRegulatoryAffairs,dubbedenclave
extremism.TheInternetmakesiteasierforustofindandjoingroupsthatwealreadyagreewith,
whichmight,inturn,makeourviewsevenmoreextreme.AccordingtoSunstein,avoidingthisproblem
inthepreInternetagewaseasier,asthefrontpageofthemajornationalnewspaperprovidedthe
sharedcollectiveexperienceaswellasahealthydoseofserendipity,exposingustoviewsandnewsthat
wemayneverencounterotherwise.
Sunsteinsfrontpagemodel,ofcourse,doesnotworkwellinsocietieswithcontrolledmedia.It
wouldbedisingenuoustocompareblogsandonlinecommunitiestothefrontpageofthemajor
nationalnewspaperin,say,Uzbekistan,wherethetypeisprobablysetbythegovernmentratherthan
freeactingeditors.Notmuchserendipitythereinfact,onemightbebetteroffreadingahandfulof
independentblogs.Thus,itispossiblethattheInternetandblogsinparticulardoplayanimportant
roleinbuildingamoredemocraticpublicsphereinauthoritarianstates.Thiswouldbeasignificant
improvementovertightlycontrolledstatemedia.Someearlyevidencesuggeststhatthisistrueatleast
insomecountries.ResearchbyColumbiaUniversitysJohnKellyconfirmsthatIranianblogsare
diverse,representingbothconservativeandliberalvoices,withanarrayofotherforcesthrowninthe
mix.Thereisnodominantfactionamongthem.
Thevaluethatreadersplaceinblogshingesontheperceptionthattheirauthorsareindependent,
freefrommanipulationbythestateorotherthirdparties.Sohowindependentarethey?Cyber
utopiansbiggestconceptualmistakeistreatingcyberspaceassomekindofanarchistzone,whichthe
authoritiesdarenotenterexcepttoshutthingsdown.Mediareportsencouragethisviewof
authoritariangovernmentsastechnophobicInternetcensors.

WhaumethatChineeInternetuerwill
uddenldemandmorepoliticalright,rather
thantheFriendorexintheCitlifetle
theoerveontheInternet?
Butwhywouldauthoritiesnotpursueatwoprongedstrategy,bothrestrictingaccesstothemost
undesirableWebsitesandusingtheWebtomanipulatepublicopinion?Thisispreciselyhow
authoritariangovernmentshavedealtwithmoresignificantmediathreatsinthepast.TheSovietsdid
notbanradiotheyjammedcertainWesternstations,crackeddownondissentingbroadcastersat
home,andexploitedthemediumtopromotetheirideology.TheNazistookasimilarapproachto
cinema,whichbecameapreferredpropagandatoolintheThirdReich.
AgrowingbodyofevidencefromChinaandRussiathetwostatesmostactiveinpostingWebcontent
showsthepatterncontinuingontheInternet.Chineseauthoritiesarenotoriousforcreatingand
operatingthesocalledFiftyCentParty,asquadofprogovernmentonlinecommentatorswhotrawl
theWebinsearchofinterestingpoliticaldiscussionsandleaveanonymouscommentsonblogsand
forums.Similarly,theRussiangovernmentoftenreliesonprivateInternetcompanies,suchasthe
prominentNewMediaStars,whichhappilyadvancethegovernmentsviewsonline.NewMediaStars
recentlyproducedapatrioticmovie,War08.08.08,successfullydistributedonlineandtoutedonmany
Russianblogs,whichblamesthewarinSouthOssetiasolelyonGeorgia.Whilethenewdigitalpublic
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spheresmaybegettingmoredemocratic(atleastquantitatively),theyarealsoheavilypollutedby
governmentoperators,makingthemindistinguishablefromtheold,tightlycontrolledanaloguepublic
spheres.
Evenifauthoritiesareincompetent,unable,orunwillingtotartheWebwithofficialinformation,
thereislittleevidencethatanopenInternetwillsuddenlymaketheChineseorRussiansdreamof
democracy.Wehavebeenherebefore:EastGermanswhocouldnottuneintoWestGerman
broadcastinghadhigherratesofoppositiontotheirgovernmentthanthosewhodid.Theideathat
unfetteredaccesstotheInternetwillbringdemocracysuggestsoneoftheworstfallaciesofcyber
utopianism.Oncetheygetonlineunsupervised,doweexpectChineseInternetusers,manyofthem
young,torushtodownloadthelatestreportfromAmnestyInternationalorreaduponFalunGongon
Wikipedia?OrwilltheyoptforTheSopranosorthenewestJamesBondflick?Whyassumethatthey
willsuddenlydemandmorepoliticalrights,ratherthantheFriendsorSexintheCitylifestylesthey
observeontheInternet?
Thus,thequestionofwhethertheInternetwillnudgetheChineseortheRussianstowardsdemandinga
moredemocraticandfreesocietyboilsdowntowhichpaththeoutwardortheinwardlookingone
theiryouthschoosetofollow.Predictably,mostcyberutopiansnurtureadeepseatedbeliefinan
inherentcosmopolitanismoftheInternet.Theyimaginethatdigitalnativesthosewhohavegrown
upsurroundedbytechnologyandtheInternetwillchoosetheoutwardpathandbecomeharbingersof
democracy,Americanstyle.Thislogichaspermeatedvirtuallyallmajorinstitutionstaskedwith
promotingdemocracyabroad,includingtheStateDepartment,whoseUnderSecretaryofStatefor
PublicDiplomacyandPublicAffairsunderCondoleezzaRice,JamesGlassman,said:Wefeelthat
aroundtheworld,youngpeopleareusingtheInternettopushbackagainstviolenceinanewway,using
socialnetworking,conveninglargegroupstohaveconversations,basically,toshareinformation.
Suchenthusiasticassessmentsalsogracetherapidlygrowingbodyofacademicandpopularliterature
ondigitalnativesintheUnitedStatesandWesternEurope.BookssuchasBornDigitalbyJohnPalfrey
andUrsGasser,GrownUpDigitalbyDonTapscott,iBrainbyGarySmallandGigiVorgan,andThe
PiratesDilemmabyMattMason,aswellasarecentthreeyearstudyondigitalyouthbythe
MacArthurFoundation,cometomind.Inthesealreadydemocraticsocieties,optimismaboutthe
Internetsimpactonthecivicengagementofyoungpeopleeventhenotionofdigitalcitizenshipis
ajustified,ifnotparticularlynew,intellectualthread.
However,outsideoftheprosperousanddemocraticcountriesofNorthAmericaandWesternEurope,
digitalnativesareaslikelytobedigitalcaptivesasdigitalrenegades,asubjectthatnoneoftherecent
studiesaddressindepth.IfthenotionthattheInternetcoulddampenyoungpeoplesaspirationsfor
democracyseemscounterintuitive,itisonlybecauseourmediaisstillenthralledbythetritenarrative
ofbloggersasaforceforpositivechange.Recentheadlinesinclude:Egyptsgrowingblogger
communitypusheslimitofdissent,FromChinatoIran,WebDiaristsAreChallengingCensors,
CubasBloggerCrackdown,Chinaswebcensorsstruggletomuzzlefreespiritedbloggers.
Muchoftheencouragingreportingmaybetrue,ifslightlyoverblown,butitsuffersfromseveral
sourcesofbias.Asitturnsout,thesecular,progressive,andproWesternbloggerstendtowritein
Englishratherthanintheirnativelanguage.Consequently,theyarealsotheoneswhospeakto
Westernreportersonaregularbasis.Shouldthemediadigabitdeeper,theymightfindample
materialtorunarticleswithheadlineslikeIranianbloggers:majorchallengetodemocraticchange
andSaudiArabia:bloggershatewomensrights.ThecoverageofEgyptianbloggingintheWestern
mainstreammediafocusesalmostexclusivelyonthestrugglesofsecularwriters,withverylittle
mentionoftherapidlygrowingbloggingfactionwithintheMuslimBrotherhood.

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LabelingaMuslimBrotherhoodblogasundemocraticsuggestsduplicity.ThusWesterngovernments,
caughtupintheheadycyberutopianismofthelasttwodecades,faceadilemma.Withouttheir
investmentsinblogs,blogaggregators,andvideoblogsinfarawaybutgeopoliticallyimportant
places,theonlinevoicesoftheWestsfavoritesecularanddemocraticforceswouldnotcarrymuch
weight.Yet,investinginnewmediainfrastructuremightalsoemboldentheconservatives,nationalists,
andextremists,posinganevengreaterchallengetodemocratization.Abrieflookattheemerging
cybernationalisminRussiaandChinaprovidesatasteofthingstocome.
Theproblemwithbuildingpublicspheresfromabove,onlineoroffline,ismuchlikethatofbuilding
Frankensteinsmonsters:wemaynotliketheendproduct.Thisdoesnotmeanweshouldgiveuponthe
Internetasaforcefordemocratization,onlythatweshouldditchtheblindingideologyoftechnological
determinismandfocusonpracticaltasks.FiguringouthowtheInternetcouldbenefitexisting
democraticforcesandorganizationsveryfewofwhichhaveexhibitedmuchcreativityontheWeb
wouldnotbeabadplacetostart.

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