Imagine: April 1917. The Finnish railway station, a armored car, the famous speech "There is such a party!" But Vladimir Ilyich does not pronounce it aloud — he posts a message in a Telegram channel. Thousands of workers and soldiers like it, repost "The April Theses" in the "OKNA ROSTA" public group, and Mensheviks try to ban him for misinformation. Sounds like madness, but let's imagine: what if Lenin in 1917 had modern internet? Mobile phones, social networks, viral videos, and recommendation algorithms — how would they change the course of the revolution, the Civil War, and possibly the entire 20th century? “The Bolsheviks would not have seized the telegraph — they would have bought advertising in Google Ads. And Kerensky would have cried not from despair, but from karma minuses.” The April Theses as a viral meme The real "April Theses" were met with hostility by party members: Kamenev and Rykov called them "nonsense." In the internet reality, it would have been different. Lenin launches a video on YouTube: "THE WORLD — TO THE PEOPLES! THE LAND — TO THE PEASANTS! THE FACTORIES — TO THE WORKERS!" Short, bold, to the rhythm of music. A checklist "10 steps to seize power" in the style of info-cigan would go viral on TikTok. A Telegram bot would distribute cards with quotes. Moderate socialists would end up in an information hole: they did not understand algorithms, could not shoot shorts, did not know what targeting was. Within three months, the Bolsheviks would have transformed from a marginal party into the main trend — not thanks to underground printing houses, but thanks to reach and reposts. Kerensky loses in comments Alexander Kerensky, head of the Provisional Government, was a brilliant orator. But oratory in the 20th century is not the same as the skill of managing a post on Instagram. Kerensky, most likely, would have led a cabinet account with boring phrases: "The government is taking measures." Lenin, on the other hand, would have crea ... Read more