The revolutions were tweeted: Information flows during the 2011 Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions

This article details the networked production and dissemination of news on Twitter during snapshots of the 2011 Tunisian and Egyptian Revolutions as seen through information flows—sets of near-duplicate tweets—across activists, bloggers, journalists, mainstream media outlets, and other engaged parti...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lotan, Gilad, Graeff, Erhardt, Ananny, Mike, Gaffney, Devin, Pearce, Ian, Boyd, Danah
Other Authors: Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Civic Media
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: International Journal of Communication 2020
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/123460
Description
Summary:This article details the networked production and dissemination of news on Twitter during snapshots of the 2011 Tunisian and Egyptian Revolutions as seen through information flows—sets of near-duplicate tweets—across activists, bloggers, journalists, mainstream media outlets, and other engaged participants. We differentiate between these user types and analyze patterns of sourcing and routing information among them. We describe the symbiotic relationship between media outlets and individuals and the distinct roles particular user types appear to play. Using this analysis, we discuss how Twitter plays a key role in amplifying and spreading timely information across the globe.