Our Founding Fathers disseminated and developed their views about government through a vibrant culture of pamphleteering, which preceded and helped precipitate the fight for independence. The most famous of these is Thomas Paine's pamphlet, Common Sense. Today a parallel can be drawn to the use of the Internet, blogs, websites, and social media to disseminate information about news and politics. What would our world be like without the Internet, and why are bills like SOPA, PIPA, and ACTA so controversial?

The following, very cool, animated infographic explains:

Via: OnlineEducation.net