ENG 111 - Essay 1 - Analyzing And Responding To An Argument (Final)

Raymond Prescod
Professor - Dr. David R. DiSarro
ENG111 Critical Reading and Writing I
December 21, 2016

Analysis and Response to Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted
A Malcolm Gladwell's piece
Gladwell opens his piece in a very descriptive manner describing a scenario that
would inevitably become the focal point of the entire reading. Gladwells essay was not
only educational because it outlined unjust events that happened some 50 plus years
ago, but it demonstrated how a revolution transpired and grew within days without the
use of modern social technology. A revolt can be achieved in a more robust manner
using face-to-face interaction than the virtual weak connections that the electronic age
provides.
The essay is generally persuasive with some limitations because even though the
protests emerged without the help of modern social media, it took days for the news and
the solidarity to eventually sweep across the state and beyond. A clear question is
raised: would modern social media have made a difference in the movement some 50
years ago? He argues his point about the real effectiveness of modern technology
usage (social media) through drawing vivid examples from history where there was no
social media influence. He also includes examples where social media offered no clear
role in determining the outcomes of situations, even though it was believed to have
done so.

One example that Gladwell used where social media was not a factor in a
successful revolt was a protest against racial segregation in a Greensboro, North
Carolina. He described a scene where four college students staged a protest that
eventually became large enough that it span across the state and beyond. Even though
the four did not have the power of social media on their side, they were still able to
attract the attention of other colleges and groups from various cities. The people that
joined in the revolution had strong connections because there were direct physical
connections sharing a common goal. If compared to today, he states that we could have
over 1000 online friends who may be weak and possibly unreliable connections.
Alternately, another example used to reinforce his point where social media, particularly
Twitter claimed to be a key contributor, but may not have been that great an influence
was the revolution in Moldova and Iran. The reason that social media could not have
been such a great influence was implied because social media is not a staple in these
countries and the audience would therefore be limited.
Although Gladwell provided some justification to the content of the essay, it is not
without some level of assumption. He is stating that even with social media, the
influence that it had over the revolt in Moldova was limited due to the small numbers
who actually use social media. It only takes one to start a revolution and that one relays
his or her message to another and it builds by way of communication. In Greensboro,
North Carolina, the growth of the movement took a number of days probably because
word to mouth took some time to spread so perhaps if there was social media, those
days may have been reduced to hours. Moldova may have had little use of the social
networking, but the few that were connected may also have been able to disseminate

the news much faster causing a more rapid information explosion than if no social
media was included at all.
Gladwell has some logical reasoning in his essay because social media is not the
catalyst to starting a revolution. Connections are only the body of a revolution, but the
foundation is that one person who dared to make a difference. The broadcasting of a
revolt using social media may only earn a person a few likes, but in order to really kick
start a movement you need to have a group physically start the process and encourage
or attract other supporters in the process. This is where the strong connections come
into play because they could reach out to the virtual connections that are referenced as
weak connections and bring them into the movement. These weak connections will in
turn bring strong or real connections and the cycle lends to growth. If we take the
authors view at face value we would omit social media from the equation altogether and
find ourselves back in Greenboro 1960 running a revolt with growth rate of one person
per day.
One major flaw in Gladwells essay is that he left no place for an alternate
perspective. Even though the reader can make some assumptions Gladwell fails to
include the alternate course of ideas. Social medias ubiquity serves as a channel to
educate and inform us minute by minute on events around the world. There are billions
of social media users and because of that, news and events travel faster than the news
can disseminate the info. I recall hearing and seeing footage on incidents that involved
recent police killings that triggered the movement Black Lives Matter on Face Book
before it was on the news. I would venture to say that even though the author made

valid points he limited himself in the exploration of the topic. Every thesis has an
alternative perspective in that you cannot say conclusively that social media does not
have an immediate or direct impact on protests. A reference can be made to how
quickly Flash Mobs are created and done by way of social media. Recently, it was
reported in the news that groups of teenagers storming stores and looting was because
of the impact of social media. Protest marches/demonstrations about the recent
Presidential election were formed through social media. The fact is it is present, the
world as we knew it is changing leaning toward advancements in technology as a
communication medium where info is disseminated quickly - it will always play a role
and be of some influence in our lives.