Book Review: Joseph G. Bock’s The Technology of Nonviolence: Social Media and Violence Prevention

Abstract

In the wake of the 2009-2012 Arab Spring protests—the first large- scale wave of Arab demonstrations in the Internet age—many pondered the significance of the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in the movement. While the actual impact of technology in the Arab Spring is contested (Morozov, 2012), we can nevertheless tentatively note that the examples of technology being used throughout the Arab Spring are at the very least compelling for the field of peacebuilding, including vio- lence prevention. In this unique cultural and technological contemporary moment, scholars who study violence should be asking themselves: in socially and politically tumultuous places, can technology predict or even be used to prevent violence?