Social Media

Towards Trustworthy Social Media and Crowdsourcing

Author: George Chamales

Editors: Lea Shanley and Aaron Lovell.

On behalf of the Commons Lab within Science and Technology Innovation Program, Woodrow Wilson Center, with the support of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Survey: Arab Youth Optimistic About Future

Three-quarters of youth in 15 Arab countries think “our best days are ahead of us,” according to a new survey by Asada’a and Burson Marsteller. About 70 percent of respondents think the Arab world is “better off” since the uprisings began in December 2010, and 67 percent feel personally better off. Nearly half of youth say their government has become more transparent and representative.

Key Saudi Cleric Warns King in Open Letter

On March 15, Sheikh Salman al Oudah warned that Saudi government inaction on political prisoners, poverty and corruption could spark violence in the kingdom. “When tempers are high, religious, political, and cultural symbols lose their value. The mob in the street takes control,” the open letter said on Twitter. Oudah called attention to key challenges facing the kingdom such as rampant unemployment, a housing shortage, and poor health and education systems.

On Cybersecurity, Crowdsourcing, and Social Cyber-Attack

Social media is responsible for much positive change in the world. But these new tools can be used by bad actors to foment strife and undermine stability, as seen during violent incidents in the Assam state of northeast India in July 2012. Cybersecurity efforts must take into account the growing potential for cyber-attack using social media, where hoax messages are incorporated into a stream of otherwise legitimate messages, and understand how quickly mobile apps and text services can disseminate false information.

Rebecca Goolsby

The Science Beat: Has Quality of Reporting Improved or Declined?

In a world increasingly driven by scientific and technological breakthroughs, are we getting the information we need to understand the rapid changes and choices we face? And as print space dedicated to science decreases, have online sources emerged to fill the void? To survey the landscape of science journalism, we spoke with Curtis Brainard, Editor of The Observatory (http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/), the Columbia Journalism Review’s “lens on the science press.”

Roundtable Discussion on the Future of U.S. Global Media

In any given week, from North Korea to Iran and across the Middle East, from China to Afghanistan, Pakistan and Myanmar, through Africa and India to Russia, Belarus, Central Asia and Cuba, 165 million people—equivalent to more than half the U.S. population—tune into the radio and television programs of U.S. International Broadcasting (USIB) by satellite, Internet and in some cases cooperating local radio stations. After more than half a century, Congressionally- funded U.S.

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Pew: Arab Publics Most Likely to Express Views Online

Arab social media users are more likely to express their opinions on politics, community issues and religion than others in Europe, Latin America, the United States and Asia, according to a new survey by Pew. In Egypt and Tunisia, more than 60 percent of surveyed users share their political and religious views online. Less than 40 percent of European and U.S. users share their political and religious views. The following are excerpts from the report with a link to the full text at the end.

Facebook Sheikhs: Egypt

By Garrett Nada

Egypt’s Facebook sheikhs reflect the growing diversity within Islam. The new tech-savvy sheikhs range from rock-star street preachers to Salafi populists. Even the old clerics are finding they have to be hip to keep their flocks. Their television shows, broadcast on popular satellite stations, compete for viewers—generating new rivalries over who controls the Muslim message.