The Alt-Majority: How Social Networks Empowered Mass Protests Against Trump - The New York Times

What happens when Facebook and Twitter are used for something more constructive than "fake news" distribution

"But if Mr. Trump has proved anything, it’s that everything is different now. We live in a culture ruled by social media streams, one in which most people are skeptical of what they see and read in the “mainstream media.”

This explains why Stephen K. Bannon, the former executive chairman of Breitbart News who is a close adviser to Mr. Trump, has been seeking to paint the news media as Mr. Trump’s primary opposition. The weakened news media is an easy mark for Mr. Trump. If the media is his only opponent, he’s got nothing to worry about.

Unlike the news media, though, protesters produce an undeniable reality. Protesters can’t easily be dismissed as “fake news.” They come to you unmediated — not from The New York Times, but from your friends and friends of friends on Facebook."

The Alt-Majority: How Social Networks Empowered Mass Protests Against Trump - The New York Times