Viral before the internetz

An interesting article on social networking and the transmission of information without the use of phones, the internet or even major newspapers within the context of the fall of communism in Europe 20 years ago.

The key:

"A network of human relationships that conveyed information informally on a regular basis, and a population who were highly focused on only a few channels of information, both official and clandestine."

Have we lost or gained since that time? I think a reasonable argument could be made for both.