Iran's presidential election contends with digital media like Twitter

Iran authorities want to suppress news coverage of the country's fiercely disputed presidential election, but those using social networking sites like Twitter have other plans.

According to an article in Variety, "Foreign media outlets have found themselves under attack as they attempt to report on protests ever since the official announcement that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had won a resounding victory in Friday's poll. But Iran's youthful and Web-savvy population has proven adept at using Twitter, blogs, mobile phones and social networks to spread the word about the post-election discord."

Meanwhile, Ahmadinejad's main opponent, Mir Hussein Moussavi, claims his loss was due to fraud and the rigging of votes.

The Variety article goes on to say, "All the major international networks have filled their coverage with frequently astounding footage of the protests, demonstrations and scuffles between government and opposition forces. Much of that footage has been shot on mobile phones and allowed Iranians to get their message out even when more traditional methods of communication have been shut off."

The editor of BBC Persian TV Interactive notes that their show has been kept on the air by the massive influx of people calling in, sending videos and photos.

The Variety article concludes with saying, "The use of Twitter, blogs and other user-generated content has proved hugely important in bypassing the government's attempted crackdown. Internet usage is very popular in Iran, with its large youthful population. The country was recently estimated to have more than 100,000 blogs."