"Online activism in asia: an introduction" - Presentation by Cherian George at FoME 2012 Symposium in Berlin. http://forum-medien-entwicklung.de (c) Cherian George, 2012 CC 2.0 BY NC (de)

1. Asia
A personal selection of themes and trends

2. Asia online
Wider access to the internet

3. Asia online
Especially the mobile internet

4. Controls
Ranging from massive blocking to
fine-grained direct and indirect
censorship, attacks on bloggers and
behind-the-scenes pressures.

5. Comparative
advantage
The internet is still far more open
than traditional media and remains
extremely valuable to activists.

6. Comparative
advantage
The internet is still far more open
than traditional media and remains
extremely valuable to activists.

7. Offline bottlenecks
No such thing as a purely online
✤
activist. All use the internet as part of
multi-modal strategies.

8. Offline bottlenecks
No such thing as a purely online
✤
activist. All use the internet as part of
multi-modal strategies.

9. Offline bottlenecks
No such thing as a purely online
✤
activist. All use the internet as part of
multi-modal strategies.
✤ Tech barriers have come down
faster than offline obstacles.

10. Pluralisation without
regime change
✤ People have used the internet to
give marginalised voices and
interests access to the public sphere –
greater pluralism.

11. Pluralisation without
regime change
✤ People have used the internet to
give marginalised voices and
interests access to the public sphere –
greater pluralism.
✤ But often political regimes and
deeper power structures remain
intact.

12. Dark side of
people power
Internet-enabled publics are a
✤
growing factor in politics.

13. Dark side of
people power
Internet-enabled publics are a
✤
growing factor in politics.
✤ But these publics don t always
move in progressive democratic
directions.

14. Dark side of
people power
✤ Strides in citizen empowerment
have outpaced have outpaced the
rule of law and individual/minority
rights.