ABSTRACT
During the Mexican presidential election of 2012, social media played an important role in shaping public debate. In particular, the #Yosoy1321 student movement used a combination of YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, websites, blogs, alternative online news venues, and public rallies to contest the power of official media and to bring the issues students considered most vital to the forefront. The #Yosoy132 movement has been compared to other protest movements worldwide and during the most active phase, many observers referred to it as the "Mexican Spring." In Mexico City, in addition to the student assemblies at Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico and other campuses, peaceful protests were held at symbolic sites of corruption. Students from both private and public universities came together for the first time, working long hours to create inclusive structures for all participants and to articulate goals for resolving the concerns that united them.
