Wael Ghonim, former Google executive and key Arab Spring activist, describes the counter-surveillance tactics he used while anonymously managing the 'We Are All Khaled Said' Facebook page in Egypt.
“I was an anonymous admin. I was hiding my identity. I did not stay at my mom's place on 25th of January because, you know, I was living in Dubai, so I would stay with my family, but I didn't. I stayed in one of my friend's offices. I changed my phones. I broke one of my SIM cards because I don't want the government to trace me if they are.”
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More from Wael Ghonim
Opinion
Ghonim: Western Democracy-Promotion Agenda Is Naive and Dysfunctional
“I do think that at the end of the day, this agenda is a naive one. And it's and, you know, I don't need much to prove its naivety because at the end of the day, even the democratic solution in the West is being kind of like in a mess right now. It's not where …”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 23:20Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
Insight
Ghonim: Traditional VC cycles incentivize startups to grow into toxic products
“You can't just build something right in, in that kind of cycle. You're going to build something that grows into cancer. In this cycle of, like, trying to, series A, series B, what is happening? You know, we need to improve this number because the investor is l…”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 1:00:10Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
AssertionNot checkable as stated
Ghonim: Social platforms adopted content moderation due to advertisers, not public pressure
“Facebook YouTube did not want to be the ministry of truth until the advertisers decided they're not happy. And then the ministry of truth was launched you know, which is fine. I mean, I guess I guess at the end of the day, it's their platform, but I'm just say…”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 1:00:45Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
Insight
Ghonim: Oppressing or torturing someone does not make a person inherently evil
“The fact that someone oppresses me does not automatically make them oppressor for good. And the fact that one is oppressing me does not make them the evil the evil people. I mean, even if they torture me, that does not make them the evil people.”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 19:38Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
Opinion
Ghonim rejects ACAB, asserting police are necessary for a manageable society
“I don't do ACAB. I was tortured by police, but I don't believe ACAB at all. I believe that all cops are important to have in the society so that we can actually have a manageable society.”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 21:48Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
Opinion
Ghonim: Social Media Networks Were Designed for Growth, Not Safety
“These infrastructure networks, these like kind of like highways of information that is being designed have not been designed with safety in mind. They have not. They actually have been designed with recklessness in mind, with growth in mind, with speed in mind…”
Wael GhonimFeb 24, 2021▶ 26:26Arab Spring Leader Wael Ghonim on Modern Social Media's Promise And Peril
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