Alexei Navalny is one of the young Russians deeply involved in the broad outpouring of protest against the fraudulent election that returned Vladimir Putin to power.  In this interview he explains the crucial role of the internet and blogs in what is happening, and why their influence is making for a more peaceful protest than would likely otherwise have happened.

Each new communications medium seems to upend politics, from the printing press to the penny post to the radio and then television.  At least three: the printing press, penny press, and television, served democratic values for a long time, though increasingly they have been subverted by corporations.  The Internet gives people another chance to free themselves from incompetent and parasitic elites, and Russia is presenting us with a useful example of the possibilities ahead.

I urge you to read his interview.