Twitter: an international political force?

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone commented yesterday that his microblogging site has achieved far-reaching political influence due to its role in the backlash against the Iranian election.

Stone wrote on the company’s blog that “It’s humbling to think that our two-year old company could be playing such a globally meaningful role that state officials find their way toward highlighting our significance.”

Twitter Room reported yesterday that the State Department urged the company to postpone a round of planned maintenance that was set to occur during daylight hours in Iran. Twitter’s executives agreed to the delay.

Stone said that “We [rescheduled our planned maintenance] because events in Iran were tied directly to the growing significance of Twitter as an important communication and information network.”

Members of the Iranian opposition against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have used Twitter to share messages, pictures, and videos of the widespread anti-government protests. The demonstrations erupted in response to Ahmadinejad’s re-election, which opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi and his suppoerters say was fixed.

In the wake of the protests, the Iranian government blocked access to many websites and barred foreign media from reporting close to the action. The government, however, has not restricted Twitter making it an attractive means of communication for the Iranian opposition.