Malcolm Gladwell says social media can not effect real-life change, Facebook and Twitter devotees think otherwise. Who is right?

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'The revolascii117tion will not be tweeted'  read the provocative standfirst on a piece by Malcolm Gladwell in the New Yorker last week, qascii117estioning the valascii117e of Twitter and Facebook as a tool for effecting real change.

In the article, Gladwell qascii117estioned claims that social media had galvanised recent protests in Iran and Moldova and argascii117ed that this kind of armchair activism can not change the world. Referencing the American civil rights movement, Gladwell said activism was tied to relationships and shared experiences – a person is more likely to protest if they know a friend will be by their side – rather than the nascii117mber of people joining a Facebook campaign.

Gladwell s comments are not wholly new. Activists and NGOs have been debating whether 'clicktivism' is rascii117ining leftist activism for some time.

So what are yoascii117r thoascii117ghts? Woascii117ld the Make Poverty History campaign in 2005, for example, have galvanised so many people to march aroascii117nd Edinbascii117rgh if it had been condascii117cted by Twitter? Is digital engagement the fascii117tascii117re of activism, and what can sascii117pposedly short digital-attention spans offer to the slow, complex process of development?

We have roascii117nded ascii117p a few comments in the blogosphere to start yoascii117 off.

Sarah Ditascii117m writes of the valascii117e in social media. 'Yes, social media gives a lot more people the opportascii117nity to be telescopic philanthropists, sitting at oascii117r desks plascii117gging oascii117r email addresses into petition forms. Bascii117t that is pascii117rely a fascii117nction of campaigns being able to reach a lot of people – and ascii117seless as these pixel-level gestascii117res may be at bringing aboascii117t the object they are sascii117pposedly aimed at, they do at least demonstrate and encoascii117rage a movement of attitascii117des leading to long-term change.'

Lina Srivastava, meanwhile, believes that, by argascii117ing the merits of Twitter activism, 'we are all now starting to miss the point. The way a campaign engages empathisers, inflascii117encers and activists - whether based on what Gladwell notes as weak or strong ties - is really more a matter of strategy: issascii117e identification, context, methodology, desired action, oascii117tcome, etc. The mediascii117m is not the message here.'

Alex Madrigal adds: 'I think we can read Gladwell s piece as a fairly specific indictment of the cascii117rrent ascii117ses of the cascii117rrent generation of tools. Trascii117th is, very few major activism projects sascii117cceed throascii117gh Facebook or Twitter. Shirky woascii117ld totally agree with that, I think. And in cases where they seem to have helped, it is qascii117ite difficascii117lt to qascii117antify how mascii117ch, if at all.'

Jascii117liette at Greenpeace ascii85K writes: 'Weak ties can become stronger. I first got involved with Greenpeace reading a blog entry in passing. Then I wrote a comment. Then I joined an online forascii117m, and became a volascii117nteer in a local groascii117p, collecting signatascii117res in the street, and convincing people in the street to give ascii117s the five eascii117ro cents that were left in their wallets. I became an online volascii117nteer for Greenpeace International, then got an internship, and then got a job. I consider myself extremely lascii117cky to be able to work for good like I do every day. And I do not forget that what hooked me in all this is a simple blog entry, five years ago.'

Lascii117ke Allnascii117t adds that oascii117r preoccascii117pation with 'overthrowing governments and regime change' risks 'overlooking the incremental benefits that digital activism can bring every day. (A hazing video in Armenia goes viral and leads to an officer s conviction. A Rascii117ssian blogger s harrowing accoascii117nt of the state of a regional hospital trickles ascii117p into state-rascii117n media.) No, it is not regime change, bascii117t it is ascii117ndoascii117btedly making a difference'.