Social media meets mainstream media

Two reports are released today that address the use of mobile phones for activism and social media as a medium for bringing about social change.  So much is written about mobile phones being used for advocay and just generally for improving people's daily lives but how much of it is really beneficial?

New Media, Technology and Activism...........

explores new media including: comparing social and traditional media; mobile telephone activism; and a new web tool for youth groups using art to support HIV/AIDS activism

while "A Survey of Rural Communities’ Attitudes on the Use of the SMS and Pod-casting Technology to Promote Human Rights"............

"is part of the UmNyango Project that uses short message service (SMS) and pod-casting technology to promote and protect human rights of rural communities in KwaZulu Natal.