Why Net Censorship in Times of Political Unrest Results in More Violent Uprisings
A Social Simulation Experiment on the UK Riots
Abstract:
Following the 2011 wave of political unrest, going from the Arab Spring to UK riots, the formation of a large consensus around Internet censorship is underway. Beyond all political consideration of consequences in terms of freedom of expression, the present paper adopts a social simulation approach to show that the decision to “regulate” or restrict social media in situations of civil unrest results in higher levels of violence. Building on Epstein’s (2002) agent based model, several alternative scenarios are generated. Systemic optimum, represented by complete absence of censorship, not only corresponds to lower levels of violence over time, but allows for significant cant periods of social peace after each outburst.
Antonio A. Casilli
Telecom ParisTech
Paola Tubaro
University of Greenwich
August 14, 2011
[Update 20th August 2011]
Article by Slavoj Žižek on the meaning of the riots