Question

read the excerpt from \the role of social media in the arab uprisings\ by heather brown, emily guskin, and amy mitchell.
almost immediately after the arab uprisings began, there was debate over the role and influence of social media in the ouster of tunisian president zine el abidine ben ali and the imminent overthrow of egyptian president hosni mubarak. in covering what some deemed the facebook or twitter revolutions, the media focused heavily on young protesters mobilizing in the streets in political opposition, smartphones in hand. and since then, the violent and sectarian unrest in syria has brought increased attention to the role of citizen journalism.
social media indeed played a part in the arab uprisings. networks formed online were crucial in organizing a core group of activists, specifically in egypt. civil society leaders in arab countries
what is the claim in this excerpt?
○ during the arab uprisings, media outlets focused on young protesters, who were unimportant in the struggle.
○ media descriptions of the arab uprisings related to facebook or twitter diminished interest in citizen journalism.
○ social media affected the arab uprisings, but its impact was not felt as strongly in egypt as in other countries.
○ social media affected the arab uprisings, but its impact was not what the news media originally thought it was.

Explanation:

The excerpt first notes early media focus on social media (Facebook/Twitter) and young protesters in the Arab uprisings, then notes later attention to citizen journalism amid Syrian unrest, and confirms social media had a role (especially in Egypt's activist organizing) but this differs from the initial media framing. The correct option matches this: social media impacted the uprisings, but not as the news media first thought.

• The first option is wrong: the excerpt does not say young protesters were unimportant.
• The second option is wrong: the excerpt does not state social media-focused coverage diminished interest in citizen journalism; instead, later unrest brought more attention to it.
• The third option is wrong: the excerpt says social media was crucial for activist organizing in Egypt, contradicting the claim its impact was weaker there.

Answer:

Social media affected the Arab uprisings, but its impact was not what the news media originally thought it was.