Facebook's launch popularizes real-identity networking on college campuses, enabling targeted outreach and data-driven organizing that reshapes digital political infrastructure.
Thefacebook.com launches from a Harvard dorm room on 4 February 2004 and registers several hundred students within its first days, before expanding to other campuses over the following weeks.
Its authenticated real-name directory establishes the model of a college social graph that later campaigns and advocacy groups would use for outreach and organizing, foreshadowing the platform’s role in U.S. political communication.
Tabak, A. J. (2004). Hundreds Register for New Facebook Website. The Harvard Crimson. Contemporaneous report, 9 February 2004, dating the thefacebook.com launch to the previous Wednesday (4 February) and recording roughly 650 registrations in the first days.
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