The Power of Whispers:A Theory of Rumor, Communication and Revolution

We study the role rumors play in revolutions using a global game model. Agents with diverse private information rationally evaluate the informativeness of rumors about the regime strength. Without communication among agents, wild rumors are discounted and agents are generally less responsive to rumors than to trustworthy news. When agents can exchange views on their assessment of rumors, a rumor against the regime would coordinate a larger mass of attackers if the regime is indeed weak. The effect of communication can be so large that rumors can have a greater impact on mobilization than does fully trustworthy information