Social Media and Peacemaking

Abstract

Taken together, this snapshot of articles affirms that social media participates in the process of peacemaking. Unlike traditional media, which used to set the agenda for peace, social media diffuses the process, making it possible to speak on both sides of any issue. These articles reveal that governments like Russia, China, Malaysia, and Turkey can control social media as a key part of propaganda. At the same time, as in the Arab Spring, activist groups can use social media to undermine government, despite the fact that their new approach might prove temporary. Perhaps most important is the view that media continue to mirror society in the digital age. Prior to social media (about 2005), traditional media fulfilled this function until an internal elite cadre of journalists started speaking to each other and controlling the agenda through something they called “advocacy journalism.” Having thus shattered the mirror of society, they now face the prospect of giving way to citizens' journalism, where their gatekeeping function are in rapid decline.