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Vahid Online

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Vahid Online
Occupationbloggers
NationalityIranian

Vahid Online (Persian: وحيد آنلاين) is the pseudonym[1] of an Iranian blogger,[2] netizen,[3] Internet activist[1][2] and Internet celebrity[4] who is one of the most followed Iranians on almost any social network.[5] He is a news geek and is considered by many of his followers as the source for daily news and information.[5]

Activism

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Days before the 2009 presidential election, Vahid Online was present in Mir-Hossein Mousavi campaign headquarters in Gheytarieh, when the place was rushed by government militias. Witnessing the event, he immediately posted it on his blog and social media accounts, and used his mobile phone to broadcast live footage on Qik.[4] Within a few hours, 8,000 users watched the video online and it went nationwide when it was shown on BBC Persian evening news.[4] By that time, his social media posts acted as a source of information for the media outside Iran regarding the developments inside the country.[5] After he was tracked down for his activities, he moved into hideout, and later escaped Iran to Turkey with the help of smugglers[4] before settling in the United States as a refugee.[6]

Google Plus' former policy of not allowing pseudonyms for users, forced Vahid Online to deactivate his account. However, after Google was convinced that this is an "established" pseudonym and he has a "meaningful following", gave his account back.[1]

News events coverage

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Vahid Online runs a Telegram channel and a Twitter account through which he actively monitors what circulates in social media to cover newsworthy events regarding Iran. He posts content that he aggregates and verifies for other Iranians and the broader world, as relied on and covered by respected outlets.[7][8][9] [10] Some recent significant instances include firsthand videos from 2017 and 2019 nationwide protests, or images and films revealing about coronavirus casualties in the country that the government tended to withhold from the public since the beginning of the outbreak.[11]

Views

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Vahid Online has challenged validity of the 'Twitter Revolution' thesis[2] and Douglas Rushkoff's view on role of social media in 2009 poll presidential election protests,[12] believing them to be "exaggerated".[6][13]

He believes that blocking access to online products in Iran by companies like Google, mirrors the policies of Internet censorship in Iran by the government.[14]

Commenting on Javad Zarif's presence in social media, he was quoted, "Zarif is the first senior Iranian official to type with his own fingers and write that he is using Facebook, a site that has been branded as a tool of enemies and mentioned in trials of opposition members"[15] and "People have gotten used to the government's stance on Facebook, and now they're hoping that with the presence of the foreign minister, the site will become unfiltered".[16]

Awards

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Vahid Online was awarded The BOBs citizen journalism people's choice award in 2016,[17] and best person to follow Persian in 2013.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c MacKinnon, Rebecca; Lim, Hae-in (July 17, 2014), Google Plus Finally Gives Up on Its Ineffective, Dangerous Real-Name Policy, Slate, retrieved October 13, 2015
  2. ^ a b c Morozov, Evgeny (2012), The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, New York: PublicAffairs, pp. 15–16, ISBN 978-1610391634
  3. ^ Keshmiripour, Behzad; Ahadi, Shahram (May 27, 2013), The fight for and over social media in Iran, Deutsche Welle, retrieved October 13, 2015
  4. ^ a b c d Diamond, Larry; Plattner, Marc F. (2012), Liberation Technology: Social Media and the Struggle for Democracy, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, pp. 145–146, ISBN 978-1421406985
  5. ^ a b c Best Person to Follow Persian, The Bobs, June 11, 2010, retrieved October 13, 2015
  6. ^ a b Ippolita (2015), Rasch, Miriam (ed.), The Facebook Aquarium: The Resistible Rise of Anarcho-Capitalism (PDF), Theory on Demand, vol. #15, translated by Riemens, Patrice; Landman, Cecile (Revised and updated ed.), Amsterdam: Institute of Network Cultures, p. 84, ISBN 978-94-92302-00-7
  7. ^ Alimardani, Mahsa (Nov 19, 2019). "The Ayatollah Comes for the Internet". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  8. ^ Bezhan, Frud (June 17, 2018). "Protest Wherever You Want, As Long As Iranian Authorities Choose The Place". RFE/RL. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  9. ^ Kenyon, Peter (August 3, 2018). "In Iran Protests, Women Stand Up, Lift Their Hijab, For Their Rights". NPR.org. NPR. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  10. ^ Funke, Daniel (January 5, 2018). "Why it's hard to verify details about the demonstrations in Iran". Poynter. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  11. ^ Erin Cunningham and Dalton Bennett (March 12, 2020). "Iran coronavirus: Satellite images show Tehran building vast burial trenches for covid-19 victims". The Washington Post. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  12. ^ Vahid Online (February 2, 2010), Vahid Online responds to Douglas Rushkoff, PBS, retrieved October 13, 2015
  13. ^ Esfandiari, Golnaz (June 11, 2010), The Myths And Realities Of New Media In Iran's Green Movement, RFE/RL, retrieved October 13, 2015
  14. ^ Esfandiari, Golnaz (January 25, 2011), Iranian Activists Welcome Access To Google Software, Call For More, RFE/RL, retrieved October 13, 2015
  15. ^ Esfandiari, Golnaz (August 21, 2013), In A First, Top Iranian Government Official Admits To Being On Facebook, RFE/RL, retrieved October 13, 2015
  16. ^ Kashani, Hanif (September 2, 2013), Zarif Snubs Instagram, Embraces Twitter, Iran Wire, archived from the original on September 26, 2014, retrieved October 13, 2015
  17. ^ "Voting 2016 - The Bobs - Best of Online Activism". thebobs.com. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  18. ^ "Winners 2013 - The Bobs - Best of Online Activism". thebobs.com. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
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