massornament

It has been some time since I last posted and a lot has happened in that time.  My blog was hacked (which was my fault for not keeping up with updates to my blogging software… but my hosting service fixed it in no time).  I have been extremely busy with a new semester (three courses, one graduate student, research and teaching assistants to supervise).  I have been walking to and from work (which shaves between seventy to ninety minutes off my day depending upon the route I take).  Some of my time has been spent with helping to plan some computer building workshops, along with the workings of other committees.  Increasingly, I have been recording and editng a lot of gameplay footage for both research and teaching purposes.  I started a very interesting book on early computers developed for the U.S. military (From Whirlwind to MITRE: The R&D Story of the SAGE Air Defense Computer; basically a MIT history of its involvement in the early computing industry and the military-industrial complex). And, finally, I have been trying to keep up with financial news the goings-on in places like England and Egypt.

There was a purpose for the listing of such personal details.  And that relates to the last subject listed: Egypt.

Earlier in the evening, I caught a part of 60 Minutes on CBS which focused on the popular uprising in Egypt and the role played by a thirty year-old marketing executive at Google in Egypt and Facebook/Twitter in instigating the events of the past two weeks.  It’s not that I doubt what was presented (at this point I can’t really comment upon the details of the story) since it all could very well turn out to be true… or close to the truth.  What I am interested in is the larger picture and the likely function of the 60 Minutes piece.  But first, a little back story is needed.

Egypt is in all likelihood caught up in an ongoing series of activities in international geo-politics that has also destabilized other countries in recent years.  The Ukraine and Georgia, Iran… all have seen major popular uprisings.  These ‘colour revolutions,’ as they have come to be known, are recognized for the important roles that various U.S. government/military agencies have played, particularly in helping setting things in motion.  This is nothing new really.  The U.S. and the U.K. orchestrated a coup in 1953 where the head of Iran was deposed and replaced by a Western puppet. The puppet was the infamous ‘Shah’ that ran a corrupt and authoritarian regime, but one friendly to Western interests (the deposed leader was a nationalist that got tired of British oil companies pumping the oil out of his country and nationalized the oil industry).  Anyway, we all know how the Shah’s regime ended: the Islamic revolution in 1979 that brought a very hostile, religious regime to power which was violently anti-western.

But this brings us back to Egypt… and 60 Minutes and social media.  By some accounts, the events in Egypt should not be so surprising.  The U.S. state department, social and youth groups from Egypt, communications companies and non-governmental agencies have been meeting in the past, including in public conferences, to aid in the various political activities.  Not surprisingly, all this has led to speculation as to what has been going on in places like Tunisia, Syria, Egypt, etc. Is this another colour revolution where U.S. intelligence tried to instigate popular uprisings?  The Ukraine and Georgia were obviously ways to pressure a resurgent Russia.  Even Iran is related historically to the U.S. and its struggle with Russia (or the Soviet Union).

That is why I found the 60 Minutes piece so intriguing.  It was basically a puff piece about this young man (a Google exec.) and the important and exclusive role that social media (other U.S. tech companies) played in the move toward democracy.  He was jailed by the regime for twelve days and released (with no apparent injuries) and then addressed large crowds on TV.  Importantly, he is not interested in leading politically.  It’s all a very neat and so perfect, you’d think it was a Hollywood script (which it may very well turn out to be).

As I said, many of the details are likely true.  But what is really important is that it just sounds right.  It fits the script of what we like to think in the West.  Our democratic institutions are strong, we are recovering from the financial crisis, our corporations and–most especially–our favourite pastimes (YouTube, Facebook, Twitter) have all helped to ouster a infamous dictator in the Middle East.  As I tell my students, for how fascinating (and fun) services like YouTube and Twitter are, they are at the same time a propagandist’s dream come true: propaganda that is sought out and passed on by domestic populations, particularly the young.  (And it doesn’t hurt that it can be done very cost-effectively, in 140 words or less.)

And here we arrive at the function of the 60 Minutes piece: propaganda for both domestic and international audiences where the ‘official’ story will quickly provide a dominant narrative that will cover the larger, more complex story.  Mainstream TV, in particular the “well-respected” 60 Minutes, broadcasts the compelling narrative described above.  A feel-good story about an articulate and Westernized Arab that will no doubt make the rounds of the game-changing social media networks.  Westerners will feel good that their way of life (especially their social media habit) is bringing democracy to the world.  More importantly, the more complex story about their government continually destabilizing parts of the world, not really for democracy but more for the competitive advantage of the U.S., will be relegated to the crevices of the internet and alternative press… where, of course, it can be easily dismissed as tin-foil-hat lore and the stuff of X-Files conspiracy.

It is the meeting of the new with the old.  The distraction provided by old media is updated with the relevancy of new media.  Older generations are united with the young in blissful ignorance and well-packaged versions of the truth.

For me, this is why propaganda is so fascinating.  As I said, it is not that it is untrue, it’s just a highly varnished and simplified version of the truth… and one that leaves out a great deal.  Since your average person is so busy and likely will not have time to really look into the details, the varnished truth will suffice.  ‘History’ has now been written with respect to the popular uprising in Egypt and this is the way it will be remembered for most people (and written into their little pieces of the social network).  It’s all about leveraging what is out there.

At any rate, it’s late and I have an early morning ahead of me.  I will try to update this post with links to the 60 Minutes piece and some good articles and images when I have a spare moment.

Peace.

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