Vliv a role sociálních médií na Arabské jaro: Egyptská revoluce - případová studie

Ahmed Fihaili

Master's thesis

The Impact and Role of Social Media Networks on Arab Spring: Egyptian Revolution Case Study.

Abstract:

While in most countries, Social Media Networks (SMN) are used for leisure and business, there are places where those platforms have become tools for mass mobilization and pro-tests organization. Countries throughout the Arab world varied in their usage of Social Media Networks (SMN), but learned from watching others on how to use it effectively to engage the outside world and to broadcast the human rights abuses committed by their respective regimes. Social unrest began in Tunisia in December 2010 and quickly spread to countries across the Middle East and North Africa, most noticeably in Egypt, Tunis and Syria. In several of these countries, protests evolved into revolutions resulting in the over-throw of autocratic governments. These events, now known as the Arab Spring, have significantly changed MENA region, and in particular in Egypt as its resulted into the restructuring of the Egyptian regime. The aim of this study is carried out based on two research themes: studying the impact and role of social media networks (SMN) in the Egyptian ?Revolution? of 2011 according to activists and experts, and studying the role of social media sites from the viewpoint of Al-Jazeera and CNN news channels.

Abstract:

While in most countries, Social Media Networks (SMN) are used for leisure and business, there are places where those platforms have become tools for mass mobilization and pro-tests organization. Countries throughout the Arab world varied in their usage of Social Media Networks (SMN), but learned from watching others on how to use it effectively to engage the outside world and to broadcast the human rights abuses committed by their respective regimes. Social unrest began in Tunisia in December 2010 and quickly spread to countries across the Middle East and North Africa, most noticeably in Egypt, Tunis and Syria. In several of these countries, protests evolved into revolutions resulting in the over-throw of autocratic governments. These events, now known as the Arab Spring, have significantly changed MENA region, and in particular in Egypt as its resulted into the restructuring of the Egyptian regime. The aim of this study is carried out based on two research themes: studying the impact and role of social media networks (SMN) in the Egyptian ?Revolution? of 2011 according to activists and experts, and studying the role of social media sites from the viewpoint of Al-Jazeera and CNN news channels.

Keywords

Arab Spring, Egypt Revolution, Uprising, Facebook, Social Media Networks

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 19. 4. 2013

Accessible from:: 19. 4. 2013

Thesis defence

Tomas Bata University in Zlín

Faculty of Multimedia Communications

Master programme / field:
Media and Communication Studies / Marketing Communications