This document outlines a lecture on the political power of communications technologies from samizdat publications in the Soviet era to the Arab Spring uprisings of 2011. It discusses how repressive regimes have tried to control dissent through censorship but also how citizens have utilized new media to organize politically. The lecture examines implications for grassroots political change and how power structures adopt new technologies. It poses questions on whether online media can be misused and if traditional media served important functions that newer forms have not replaced.