Stories about Citizen Media from August, 2020
Bangladesh battles the country's longest-running floods since 1998
The devastation comes at a time when emergency and health services were already overwhelmed with responding to the COVID-19 epidemic.
Disinformation about Belarus spreads in the Balkans via online portals and social media
Fact-checkers from Serbia and North Macedonia have been detecting and countering disinformation favoring the authoritarian regime in Belarus in the mold of previous propaganda narratives from pro-Kremlin troll armies.
‘Boca de Rua': The Brazilian newspaper produced entirely by people living on the street
Created in Porto Alegre almost 20 years ago, 'Boca de Rua' is the only member of the International Network of Street Papers entirely created by people living on the streets
President Bolsonaro flooded with questions on social media about unexplained deposits into his wife's bank account
Why, a reporter asked the Brazilian president, was nearly US$16,000 deposited into the bank account of Bolsonaro's wife, Michelle, by their long-time acquaintance Fabrício Queiroz?
Collusion accusations grow between Haitian government and organised crime groups
"[...] The gang leaders are seemingly free from persecution so long as they help keep the peace in the neighborhoods they control."
Spain's scandal-hit former king leaves the country
Spaniards reacted on Twitter with the hashtag #RepúblicaYa or #GraciasMajestad
Why women’s rights and digital rights go hand-in-hand on Namibian Twitter
In Nambia, a Twitter campaign to legalize abortion drew waves of attacks against feminist activists, but as a result, parliament has agreed to discuss Nambia's outdated abortion laws.
Jamaicans at home and abroad express shock at ‘outrageous and offensive’ BBC comedy sketch
"This is a harmful piece of work, and its release seems to have completely ignored the current state of the world in which people are tirelessly campaigning for racial equality."
Islamophobic post on Facebook leads to deadly violence in Bangalore
India experiences another episode of real-life violence triggered by online hate speech.
From dubplates to debates: Election campaigning in Jamaica during a pandemic
With rising numbers of COVID-19 cases limiting the ways in which political candidates can campaign, many are producing dubplates — short music videos promoting themselves — to reach the electorate.
‘Concerned IT specialists’ launch database of detained Belarusian protesters
Since August 9, over 7,000 people have been detained in mass protests against the Belarusian government. A new database provides their names and locations — in a bid to get them home safely.
How one Telegram channel became central to Belarus’ protests
A channel on the Telegram messeng er service run by four Belarusian journalists in Poland has become a crucial source of information on the political upheavals in their homeland
Trinidad & Tobago's 2020 election results are currently being recounted
The preliminary results of Trinidad and Tobago's general election were clear: the incumbent won, securing 22 of 41 parliamentary seats, but the opposition has challenged the outcome.
It's time to tackle post-COVID-19 mental health
Realistically, how many survivors will receive treatment for their mental health?
Natives’ or ‘outsiders'? A mob attack in Meghalaya throws questions of belonging into sharp relief
The ethnic tensions of Meghalaya – and many more of India's north-eastern states – can be traced back to the 'outsider' narrative.
Is India's digital ID system, Aadhaar, a tech solution for a socio-economic problem?
The world's largest biometric ID system was intended to provide a technological solution to socio-economic problems; instead, it has further ostracised marginal and vulnerable communities.
After its general election, Trinidad & Tobago's racist underbelly is showing
In a racially heated post-election climate, blogger Amilcar Sanatan advises being "brave enough to call out what is wrong" in order to build a more just and equal society.
An earthquake shook Tanzania. A new law prohibits citizens from speaking about it online.
Revised online content regulations in Tanzania prohibit talking about pandemics, natural disasters or politics without government approval. Is it possible to control essential online conversations? If so, at what cost?
‘This is a partisan movement of a partisan nation': a Belarusian poet reflects on her homeland's turmoil
"The greatest weakness made visible in these past months has been how little the state knows its own people," says poet Valzhyna Mort
‘Hiroshima Timeline’ uses tweets to portray real-time experience of world's first atomic bombing
Three Twitter accounts use an "on-this-day" format to share observations and experiences of daily life from 75 years ago in the months leading up to the August 6, 1945 bombing.
The historic selection of Kamala Harris as the Democrats’ vice-presidential candidate resonates in the Caribbean
Could Kamala Harris, daughter of immigrants and the first Black/South Asian woman vice-presidential candidate for a major U.S. political party, be "great for diversity"?