D.C. diplomat finds a powerful new tool in Twitter

WASHINGTON —

The Obama administration says it has tried to avoid words or deeds that could be portrayed as American meddling in Iran's presidential election and its tumultuous aftermath.

Yet, a 27-year-old State Department official e-mailed the social-networking site Twitter on Monday with an unusual request: Delay scheduled maintenance of its global network, which would have cut off service while Iranians were using Twitter to swap information and inform the outside world about the mushrooming protests in Tehran.

Jared Cohen's request, made to Twitter's co-founder, Jack Dorsey, is yet another new-media milestone: recognition by the U.S. government that an Internet blogging service that did not exist four years ago has the potential to change history in an ancient Islamic country.

"This was just a call to say: 'It appears Twitter is playing an important role at a crucial time in Iran. Could you keep it going?' " said P.J. Crowley, the assistant secretary of state for public affairs.

Twitter complied, saying in a blog post Monday that the company put off the upgrade until Tuesday night — 1:30 a.m. today in Tehran — because its partners recognized "the role Twitter is currently playing as an important communication tool in Iran." The network was working normally again later Tuesday night.

The State Department said its request did not amount to meddling. Cohen, they note, did not contact Twitter until three days after the vote was held and well after the protests had begun.

"This is completely consistent with our national policy," Crowley said. "We are proponents of freedom of expression. Information should be used as a way to promote freedom of expression."

The episode demonstrates the extent to which the administration views social networking as a new arrow in its diplomatic quiver. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton talks regularly about the power of e-diplomacy, particularly in places where mass media are repressed.

Cohen, a Stanford University graduate who is the youngest member of the State Department's policy-planning staff, has been working with Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and other services to harness their reach for diplomatic initiatives in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Last month, he organized a visit to Baghdad by Dorsey and other executives from Silicon Valley and New York's equivalent, Silicon Alley. They met with Iraq's deputy prime minister to discuss how to rebuild the country's information network, as well as sell Twitter's virtues.

Referring to Mir Hussein Mousavi, the main opposition candidate, Crowley said, "We watched closely how Mousavi has used Facebook to keep his supporters informed of his activities."

Tehran has been buzzing with tweets, the posts of Twitter subscribers, sharing news on rallies, police crackdowns on protesters, and analysis of how the White House is responding.

With authorities blocking text-messaging on cellphones, Twitter has become a handy alternative for information-hungry Iranians. While Iran also has tried to block Twitter posts, Iranians are skilled at using proxy sites or other methods to circumvent the official barriers.

A Twitter account called IranNewsNow sent a message to CNN's Twitter account: "don't listen to what iran gov says u can or can't do! You can report the pics/vids coming from Twitter!"

An account called StopAhmadi wrote Tuesday night, "We need ppl around world helping to raise the issues put pressure on Iranian gvmt." It posted links to pictures from Tehran, including one showing a man bleeding profusely from his chest, surrounded by protesters.

There also were suspicions that some pro-government forces might be using new-media outlets to send out misinformation. One popular opposition site, Persiankiwi, warned followers Tuesday to ignore instructions from people with no record of reliable posts.

In addition to Twitter, YouTube has been a critical tool to spread videos from Iran when traditional media outlets have had difficulty filming protests or the ensuing crackdown. One YouTube account showed disturbing images of police officers beating people in the streets. On Monday, ABC News' Lara Setrakian put out a call for video on Twitter, writing, "Please send footage we can't reach!"

BBC's Farsi-language television channel said that, for a time Tuesday, it was receiving about five videos a minute from amateurs, even though the channel largely is blocked within Iran. One showed pro-government militia members firing weapons at a rally.

"We've been struck by the amount of video and eyewitness testimony," said Jon Williams, BBC's world news editor. "The days when regimes can control the flow of information are over."

As new media proliferates, however, traditional journalists are having a more and more difficult time.

Journalists were told Tuesday that they could not cover protests without permission. The restrictions "effectively confine journalists to their offices," a BBC spokesman said.

Still, many ventured into the streets to witness pro- and anti-government protests, at considerable risk. At the Laleh Hotel in central Tehran, Time magazine columnist Joe Klein said "a number of journalists were coming back from the streets pretty badly beaten."

As their visas expire, journalists were looking for any chance to report. Jim Marshall, the last Sky News staffer in Tehran, was banned from reporting, so he went shopping, and came upon thousands of supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at a rally.

"I kept shopping, and they kept demonstrating," he wrote in a blog post. "This was turning into a test of wills. How much longer could I shop without slipping into reporting?" Once he realized he was carrying a notepad, he swiftly left the scene.

New York Times reporters Mark Landler, Brian Stelter and Richard Perez-Pena contributed to this report.