Blogging for Social Change: How New Media Gives Us All A Vox.

           Mona Eltahawy, an award-winning columnist and international speaker on Arab issues, spoke Wednesday to University of Oklahoma students on the impact of social media around the world.  “Blogging for Social Change” was sponsored by OU’s Center of Social Justice and highlighted Eltahawy’s experiences with social media and how people around the world can use it to make a difference.

            Eltahawy, a proud Egyptian Muslim spoke to students and fellow bloggers about social media being not only a way to vent, but as an effective way to get information and to spread it.  She spoke of young bloggers in the Middle East that saw  ‘new media’ as a way to shake society up.  For many of these citizen journalists, their online dissent often ended in imprisonment, violence or death. 

            Social media is no longer just to pass the time or to avoid homework but have turned into news services for the masses. “They are my eyes and ears out there in the world,” said Eltahawy about her followers on Facebook and Twitter.

            Many view social media not as a credible news source compared with classic journalism such as newspapers, radio and television. Eltahawy believes that readers should check the credibility of the person reporting the information as well as to place it in context with the situations. 

            Eltahawy believes that social media can be used to do unexpected, yet great things. 

            “The wonderful thing about Facebook & this is where you can start to think about how you use Facebook & social media, is that one of the most effective ways for getting out the word out, whether it is for an event like this here for the Center of Social Justice or whether it’s to protest police brutality…find people who are like nodes of connection. Find people who have a lot of followers or have a lot of friends on Facebook & tell them your message & they will spread it,” said Eltahawy.

          

  Mona Eltahawy will be at a panel discussion “My America, My Islam,” sponsored by the Center for Social Justice Tuesday, Sept. 21 at 7 pm at the Regents Room in the Oklahoma Memorial Union.  For more on OU’s Center for Social Justice and to find out how to get involved visit their website http://peace.ou.edu/  . To learn more about Mona Eltahawy visit her blog http://www.monaeltahawy.com/blog/ .