Maybe. In less than a week, we will be able to measure whether or not social media is prepared to take on the challenge.

Earlier this month, Timothy Ferriss, author of the New York Times Bestseller, The 4-Hour Work Week, recruited some of the world’s most successful and popular leaders in technology, media, and the blogosphere to conduct the largest online literacy experiment to date.

Most importantly, Ferriss focused his campaign solely on using Social Media channels including Twitter, Pownce, Facebook and Tumblr along with bloggers to help spread the word.

The success of this campaign will turn into an interesting case study on the power and effectiveness of mass marketing through social media. It’s about more than getting people to view your blog, Twitter, Pownce or Facebook page. It’s about whether or not you are really able to drive actual participation, and change whether or not people are choosing to be an active or passive participant.

It’s hard to get people to participate in something, even for a good cause. For example, the Yoplait yogurt campaign. The other day I peeled the top of my Yoplait light yogurt and as I threw away the lid, I felt guilty. The lid was bright pink for breast cancer, and I know that if you collect and send in lids they donate money to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure foundation. But, I just don’t want to take the time to clean, collect, and send in my lids. Does that make me a bad person? Maybe, but probably not.

The difference is, I knew that I had to actively do something there to contribute. But, with this online social media campaign, you are able to help simply by spreading the word and donating online with a click of a button. In less than 15 minutes, you have donated money and spread the word online. It can’t be much more simple than that.

About LitLiberation

The goal of this campaign is to raise $1 million in 30 days, through word of mouth, or rather, word of the internet.

In conjunction with DonorsChoose.org and RoomToRead, LitLiberation has been working to make it incredibly simple for anyone to fund a specific project in developing countries or support U.S. public schools.

LitLiberation supporters include:

• Marc Andreessen (co-founder of Netscape and Ning)
• Rohit Bhargava (VP of Interactive, Ogilvy PR Worldwide)
• Drew Curtis (Fark.com)
• Jason DeFillippo (creator of Blogrolling.com, co-founder of Metroblogging)
• Tom Foremski (SiliconValleyWatcher.com)
• Sean Keener (CEO of BootsnAll Travel Network)
• Minjung Kim (Hot Rawker and Tech Kisser)
• Dave McClure (500Hats)
• Matt Mullenweg (Founding developer of WordPress)
• Robert Scoble
• Neil Patel (Pronet Advertising)
• Fabio Rosati (CEO of Elance)
• Darren Rowse (ProBlogger)
• Premal Shah (President of Kiva.org)
• Gina Trapani (Lifehacker)
• Brian Solis (bub.blicio.us, PR 2.0, Principal of FutureWorks PR)
• Steve Hanselman (co-founder of LevelFiveMedia, former group publisher for Harper Business)

Additional Links:

Ferriss’ Bid to Build a School in Vietnam
LitLiberation Prizes
Find a program to fund in developing countries
Create a page to fund the project in developing countries
Fund U.S. school projects