The Middle East’s latest unrest has revived once again a tired debate about the power of social media.Recent headlines gush about the arrival of the “Facebook Revolution” or “Twitter Diplomacy.” Critics like Evgeny Morozov respond by noting that the influence of new media has been exaggerated by a press enthralled with “techno-utopianism.” Social media enables fast coordination, critics say, not the narrative or resolve necessary to sustain a movement; flashmobs do not a political organization make.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/02/opinion/02iht-edwoods02.html