The US government and press seem to be largely ignoring public protests against an oppressive regime in Tunisia, according to Al-Jazeera. Over the course of the past few days, Tunisian citizens have gathered in the streets to demonstrate their displeasure with the staggering rate of unemployment and the draconian regime of their current leader, President Ben Ali. They are also striving to document their struggle via social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.

Yet despite the significance of this event, the US seems strangely silent.

The author, Jillian York, who works for the Berkman Center for Internet and Society, observes that this lapse of attention stands in direct contrast the US reaction to a similar incident in Iran during the summer of 2009, in which Iranian citizens staged a massive protest against a militant government.

In that case, the US actively encouraged these citizens in their quest for freedom, lauding their bravery and praising the potential of the Internet to catalyze positive change. Although this protest in Iran failed to bring about a significant alteration in the status quo, it was nevertheless hailed as a demonstration of the importance of Internet freedom. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made this point clear in a speech at the Newseum, in which she called out the governments of Iran and China for hampering freedom of speech in their respective nations.

In her blog, York cites the hypocrisy of US government policy. She explains that while the US publically chastises the governments of Iran and China for their repressive tactics, it tends to remain silent with regard to similar incidents in other countries such as Tunisia and Egypt.

York notes that this is mainly because these governments happen to be our allies in a tumultuous region – the Middle East – and the US is therefore reluctant to rock the boat. Yet, York highlights this practice as fundamentally unfair, and moreover signifies a serious breach of US credibility, pointing out that “if the United States of America were still truly about freedom, we would do these things, because an ally that oppresses its citizens is no ally at all.”

It appears that Internet freedom is in short supply throughout the Middle East, according to an article from Iranian.com. This piece summarizes the many instances in which bloggers were arrested for daring to publically protest their respective governments online. The author ended on a hopeful note by expressing his belief that the Internet represents an effective tool against repressive regimes.

Yet there are those who believe otherwise. The Boston Globe reviewed a book that draws attention to the fact that even open US support of anti-government protests fails to do much good. The book, entitled The Net Delusion: The Dark Side of Internet Freedom, clearly expresses the belief that the power of social networking is mostly hype. The author, Evgeny Morozov, employs examples to demonstrate that Facebook and its ilk prove to be no match for savvy governments. Morozov points out that the Iranian government handily crushed the Twitter revolt, in spite of the fact that it was fully supported by other nations across the globe.

Another dark side of the Internet was revealed in an article from YNet News. The Israeli government recently came upon two Facebook groups that encouraged violence against Muslims. These pages published incendiary announcements such as “The Only Good Arab is a Dead Arab” and provided instructions for when and where to attack Palestinian enclaves in Jerusalem. Israeli police are being urged by the State Prosecutor’s Office to wage a criminal investigation against these groups, in an effort to stem possible future violence.

In sum, it is worth noting that the Internet is not always a bastion of freedom and goodwill. Although it is responsible for many great things, it should not represent the sole source of instigating change.