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Krebs, B. (2012). Twitter bots target Tibetan protests. The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved on March 24, 2012 from http://www.smh.com.au/it-pro/security-it/twitter-bots-target-tibetan-protests-20120322-1vl5h.html This news article examines the emerging use of Twitter bots to hinder and thwart political protest. Twitter bots are automated Twitter accounts that auto-follow and send junk tweets that can jam up a Twitter feed. The news article covers the current political unrest in Tibet where dissidents are using the social media tool Twitter to protest their suppression under Chinese rule. Popular Tibetan hash tags used by the protesters are being targeted by these Twitter bots and effectively rendered useless as they are flooded with meaningless tweets. The author reports that this practice of online suppression was also put into use by pro-government forces during the disputed parliamentary elections in Russia last year, where anti-Kremlin tweets were diluted by the inundation of automated pro-government messages. This article shows the challenges being faced by political protesters using Twitter as its strength as a message platform is being subverted and used against them. It also highlights how governments can avoid taking the extreme action of shutting down Twitter in their country, and the negative backlash this would bring, and instead leaving it open for their own ends. And whilst the author notes that Twitter did crack down on the events in Russia, it remains to be seen what action, if any, will be taken in Tibet and what actions the protesters themselves can take to circumnavigate this threat.

This article reveals an emergence of spam-bots and pro-governmental forces using social media to suppress political activism. It is ironic that this liberating technology that provides activists with an outlet to report, communicate and collaborate information, is being used against them to prevent further protesting. Clearly, this news report is of great value towards the discussion of political activism because most articles appear to discuss the way in which protesters have harnessed the web to their advantage. Yet, there is evidence to suggest that the government, or at least pro-governmental supporters, are using the same technology to interfere with events. Tibetan protestors were using Twitter as a tool in their stand against Chinese rule. It follows suit of the successful Arab Revolution, by organizing the dissemination of information and reports with the tags #tibet and #freetibet (Krebs, 2012). However, it took a turn for the worst when spam-bots started flooding these hashtags with meaningless information to break down the means of communication for protestors (Krebs, 2012). This shares similarities with the methods used by the Iranian government to spread misinformation to protestors, by manipulating the technology to their own advantage (Grossman, 2009). The authorities infiltration of Twitter appears to be an effortless solution to thwart political protest, rather than completely shutting down access to the Internet. Whilst this has the potential to endanger the lives of citizens, people are quick to recognize the difference between bots and genuine people, as other users were warned to be wary of new Twitter accounts spreading misinformation in Iran (Grossman, 2009). Clearly, this article is highly relevant to the topic and appears to be a reliable source. It discusses an aspect of political protesting that has had little to no coverage in the broader mainstream media and academic papers. Reference: Grossm