Internet and Politics What Challenges

Internet and Politics

What challenges does the internet present to the authoritarian rule?

The Internet is a direct threat to authoritarian rule. This is occurring through the rapid spread of this technology to different regions around the globe. During times of oppressive activities by these regimes, communication is often cut off to various regions. The focus of the government is to brutally crackdown on dissent and opposition. This means that they must prevent any kind of communication with the outside world. Once this occurs, is the point that the government can conduct operations which are targeting these groups (with little to no international interference). (Gold, 2011) ("Syrian Diplomats defects," 2012) ("Can Social Networking Overthrow a Government," 2011)

The Internet is a threat to these regimes by allowing graphic images to be released. This is when the activities of the government will face greater amounts of scrutiny. Moreover, this medium is used by the opposition to organize and coordinate activities. For authoritarian regimes, this is challenging their authority by giving other groups the ability to question their legitimacy and policies enacted. (Gold, 2011) ("Syrian Diplomats defects," 2012) ("Can Social Networking Overthrow a Government," 2011)

What are the ways that the internet challenges political authority in non-democratic or quasi-democratic countries?

The Internet has directly challenged the political authority in authoritarian nations. A good example of this can be seen by looking no further than the events that were occurring in Syria and Libya. In the case of Syria, this is occurring through different images that are posted on Facebook and You Tube. Since the uprising began in 2011, these images were used to rally and strengthen the opposition. It has also provided direct evidence of the atrocities that are being committed by the government (which has resulted in a series of sanctions against the Assad regime). This has led to a large number of high profile defections of military officers and units. As a result, the Internet is a major threat to the Syrian government. This is directly challenging the legitimacy and authority of the regime. (Gold, 2011) ("Syrian Diplomats defects," 2012) ("Can Social Networking Overthrow a Government," 2011)

During the Libyan Revolution, the Internet helped to play a central role in leading to the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi. This took place, through different opposition groups using Twitter to communicate with each other. Despite the government cutting off all communication, the Internet allowed these individuals to coordinate different activities and operations. At the same time, Twitter was utilized as a way to effectively recruit new soldiers and encourage high level military defections. This gave the opposition the ability to spread their message and identify weaknesses in the regimes vulnerabilities. Once this occurs, is the point that this medium is helping to empower these groups (which led to the eventual downfall of the government). This is illustrating how the Interne unified the opposition and created an effective strategy for toppling the regime. ("Can Social Networking Overthrow a Government," 2011)