Tunisians Turn to Social Media, But is it Reliable?

Social media played a critical role in the Tunisian revolution – organizing and energizing young revolutionaries. Facebook, in particular, is vastly more pervasive in Tunisia than in neighboring North African countries like Libya and Algeria. According to Facebook Statistics by Country, Tunisia has 3,134,500 Facebook users, representing 29.6% of the total population.

It therefore comes as no surprise then that many young Tunisians continue to turn to sites like Facebook not only to connect with friends, but exchange ideas on culture, politics, and other news topics. But who assesses the truth of these stories that often hop from person to person with just the click of a mouse?

When Tunisian swimmer Taki Mrabet was removed from the Men’s 400m Individual Medley qualifying heats on July 28, the reasons for his disqualification were unclear. Those who had not watched the event saw only a small marker next to Mrabet’s name on the London 2012 official website saying “DSQ” (disqualification).

It didn’t take long before rumors began to swirl across the internet, alleging that the Tunisian had decided to withdraw from the race rather than face an Israeli opponent. Pictures like the one above spread across social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. Despite relying on scant information and misidentifying the participants, the picture was seen by people around the world. The man pictured, in fact, is gold medalist Oussama Mellouli, not Mrabet, and Gal Nevo, Mrabet’s opponent, serves in the computer service unit, not the Air force.

These rumors represent a pattern that has been steadily growing both in Tunisia and worldwide: an increasing reliance on social media to share news of which much is later deemed untrue as well as the lack of accountability on the part of those who spread these untruths, either deliberately or accidentally.

Numerous news and blog websites quoted an article initially published in Tunisia Live (often incorrectly or out of context) that broke news of Mrabet’s disqualification, when information was not readily available. Though later reports by Tunisian News Agency TAP and phone calls to the ministry confirmed the fact the Mrabet was disqualified due to an error in his technique, rumors continued to swirl. Many organizations, both on the right and left of the political spectrum, used the story to foster their own political ends, claiming Muslim intolerance of Jews or depicting Mrabet as a man who courageously fought for the Palestinian cause.

One Twitter user expressed his frank opinion on the matter, “Tunisian swimmer Taqi Murabit has won the entire Olympics, as far as I am concerned. No gold medals can beat a golden conscience.”

Some American conservative commentators used the rumors as an opportunity to portray Muslims and those who oppose Israeli policies in Palestine as extremists, who are desperate to believe anything negative about Israel.

Mrabet, who was born in France and trained in the US, attempted to dispel these rumors in an interview with BBC Arabic conducted just days after the race, saying, “It was a foul that could happen to anyone and should not be tied to politics or religion. We often compete with Israelis and people from other religions and countries. If we compete in sports like that (withdrawing against Israelis), then we don’t have sportsmanship.”

Many will recall the riots that engulfed Tunis and many other cities after a controversial art show in La Marsa. What some may forget is the role that social media played in drumming up fear and anger. Pictures from the art show, some of them fake, circulated on Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter, urging viewers to take action against these artistic displays that offended some people’s religious beliefs. On some of the videos, the artists names and personal information accompanied the art, bringing the artists’ safety into question. Despite the fact that certain elements of the stories about the art show were falsified or exaggerated, many accepted these assertions wholeheartedly.

During the reign of Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali, journalists were viewed as little more than public apologists for the regime. With Ben Ali’s censors and monitors no longer logging their every keystroke, people are more free to share opinions on evolving news stories, either in person or via new technology. This ability to freely share information has both benefits and drawbacks.

“Social media is a positive asset to Tunisian media. It is a source of information for the Tunisian people and the most trusted source of news,” said Hichem Snoussi, a media expert and member of the National Committee of Information and Communication Reform (INRIC).

“These sites are the hardest thing for the government to control. Peer-to-peer information sharing destroys the possibility of monopolizing information,” Snoussi continued.

While these aspects provide Tunisians with a safe way to share all kinds of information, Snoussi made sure to speak about how the positive aspects should be measured against the potential negatives of sharing news via social networking.
“These sites can be bought by people who want influence. They can also foster rumors,” he said.

Such events are not limited to Tunisia. India, for example, was recently swept by rumors of caste-based violence. Though later proved untrue, these rumors prompted panicked exoduses from numerous states in the northeast. Nor are political rumors alien to Western countries’ vibrant presses, where evolving political issues take on a life of their own on the internet. But Tunisia’s current situation, as it strives to build a permanent democracy, is particularly interesting.

Many Tunisians don’t have access to every event that takes place in their country and must rely on accounts from others, be they reporters or friends. Despite the fact that the art show was open to the public, space was limited. Moreover, the exhibition highlighted aspects of culture (women’s rights and religion) that not every Tunisian is excited to talk about. Similarly, in the Taki Mrabet incident, although the information on these stories is readily available on the internet, some Tunisians continue to rely on interpersonal methods of aquiring news: talking to friends and neighbors as well as pulling information from social networking sites.

Discussing the future of news and social network sites, Snoussi explained, “Right after the revolution, media regained the trust of Tunisians. The state television channel got 40% of their audience back but now, it’s losing people’s trust again as the government exerts control over the media once more. It’s an issue of trust. People don’t trust traditional sources of news anymore.”

Myriam Ben Ghazi and Sana Ajmi contributed reporting