Functioning Iran Proxies Power Social Media Election Protests

by Tina Kells | June 15, 2009 at 11:41 am

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The power of social media has been aggressively harnessed by activists trying to draw international attention to the post election protests in Iran. Among the most utilized social media tools used by protesters in Iran and supporters around the globe has been the micro-blogging service Twitter.

Early real-time information about the erupting post election backlash in Iran lit up presence streams across Twitter and prompted many users to "green their avatar" in a show of social media solidarity with Iranian protesters. The #iranelection hashtag is currently among the highest trending terms on Twitter along with #iremember, Functioning, Tehran, and Iranian.

Another election protest trend taking over Twitter is the publication of the IP addresses of functioning Iran proxies; proxy servers that will allow Iranians to access information from the outside. The Twitter stream for the search term "functioning Iran proxies" is updating every minute with more addresses to be used by people inside the blocked nation.

See the growing Twitter list of fuctioning Iran proxies.

Twitter supporters are warning users not to retweet the functioning Iran proxies to the #iranelection hashtag as it is "being monitored by Iranian authorities." Instead, Twitter protesters are being encouraged to use an @StopAhmadi call out, as if that will stay off the radar of the Iranian government.

RT @danielschut RT @StopAhmadi Send Functioning Iran proxies to @StopAhmadi, do not post them on #iranelection! They are screening Twitter!

The protests agains the outcome of the Iranian Election have been fierce with many calling for an official review. Incumbent Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad beat publicly favored Mir-Hossein Mousavi in the Iranian Election held June 12, 2009. Ever since the Ahmadinejad win was announced the entire country of Iran has been rocked by protest from Mousavi supporters who claim the vote was fixed. But is there any truth to the fixed vote accusations of Mousavi supporters?

While western news reports from Tehran in the days leading up to the voting portrayed an Iranian public enthusiastic about Ahmadinejad's principal opponent, Mir Hossein Mousavi, our scientific sampling from across all 30 of Iran's provinces showed Ahmadinejad well ahead.

Independent and uncensored nationwide surveys of Iran are rare. Typically, pre-election polls there are either conducted or monitored by the government and are notoriously untrustworthy. By contrast, the poll undertaken by our nonprofit organizations from 11 May to 20 May was the third in a series over the past two years. Conducted by telephone from a neighboring country, field work was carried out in Farsi by a polling company whose work in the region for ABC News and the BBC has received an Emmy award. Our polling was funded by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

The feverent protests of Mousavi supporters have earned the sympathies of the social media set and have spawned a steady stream of Twitter accounts from people in Iran. But do the Twitterati know what it is they are "greening" their avatars in support of? Do they understand why they should retweet the IPs of functioning Iran proxies?

Is the Twitter mirror protest a sign of solidarity with Iranians who feel democracy was corrupted in the election, or is it a show of support for Mousavi? Is it a legitimate call to action, or nothing more than a political fad on Twitter?

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is regularly vilified in the press in Iran and abroad, but what is the basis for the repeated calls of a rigged election? While Ahmadinejad may have made some unpopular decisions as Iranian President, his challenger Mirhossein Mousavi does not have a squeaky clean track record in public policy making either.

The protests in Iran are a fascinating exercise in political action but is the Twitter sympathy based on an educated opinion of the issues at hand and the positions of the two leaders, or is it a fever caught by a social media service heavily populated by people who simply love social activism on its face?

It would be worth a Twitterer's time to learn more about Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad before jumping on the Twitter protest bandwagon by turning your avatar green, posting comments to hashtag streams, and retweeting the fuctioning Iran proxies posts. Social media is intoxicating at times and it really loves a good political protest, but it is important to know the facts behind the protests before jumping on board any bandwagon.

A Brief History of Mir-Hossein Mousavi

Pro Mir-Hossein Mousavi Website

Mir-Houssein Mousavi on Twitter (unverified)

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: A BBC Profile

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Official Blog

What’s the Arab Take on the Iranian Election?

Guardian.UK Live Blog on the Iranian Election Protests

But live Twitter accounts are providing a fascinating view of events in Iran. They clearly show that some of the opponents fear for their safety.
Here are some Twitter sites to check on the Internet:

http://twitter.com/persiankiwi

http://twitter.com/Change_for_Iran

http://twitter.com/madyar

http://twitter.com/mousavi1388

http://twitter.com/lotfan

The first site has been providing live feeds from today's protest march, although many of the reports are rumors.

The second site (Change for Iran) apparently is being operated by a student, who has provided details of attacks on students by members of Hezbollah, according to the students. There also are links to Web sites where Ahmadinejad's opponents have posted photos of the universities under attack.

The third site (Madyar) also has a number of photos.

Some of the sites are written in Farsi, but if you can't understand that language, the photos are unmistakeable.

Note: Twitter rescheduled planned maintenance on June 15, 2009 so the site would not go down while Iranian activists and their supporters are using it to speak to the world.

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Yuliya Talmazan

at 11:53 on June 15th, 2009

I think the use of colour to show preferences in this election is interesting. It just leads to show the confusion of people over candidates and what they stand for. Green colour was originally adapted by Mir Hossein Mousavi's supporters, but I ranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad wore green at his victory acceptance speech after winning the election on Friday .

Pythiian1

at 18:48 on June 15th, 2009

Great piece, Tina.

I'm told that some of the Twitters are also Ahmedinejad's supporters spreading rumors and/or challenging the Mousavi's supporters.

Paschen

at 19:13 on June 15th, 2009

Green being the colour of Islam could work against this movement since some from the governing party wear is now to show their alliance with Iran Islamic Revolution that broth the tyranny of the Shaw down.