Social Media

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.”

            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.

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.

The Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program is pleased to announce the publication of an Occasional Paper, “A 21st  Century Vision for U.S. Global Media,” by Wilson Center Senior Scholar A.