Prominent writer and critic of censorship in China Murong Xuecun sees great potential in Chinese social media in pushing for a more democratic China. He tweeted on Nov 28[zh], translation here:
In the 1980s, because of the limited power of the government, China experienced unprecedented prosperity in culture and thought, but one major event ended everything. Today in the microblogging era, we have become a lot more open within a few years, surpassing the 80s. People not only talk about the concepts of democracy and freedom, but also work pragmatically, they fight for their own rights. It can be asserted that, within a few years, the microblogging era will have in its own major event, which will be a big test for China.