Stories about Citizen Media from March, 2012
India: Young Women Learning About Participatory Video
A group of young women in the slums of Hyderabad in India are learning how to make videos to change their communities, and in this next film the group of young girls explain what they've learned and how they are helping their communities and themselves through their work.
Malawi: Meet Malawi's Most Followed Lawyer on Facebook
Facebook has become one of the main platforms for updates and socio-political discussions in Malawi. For example, Malawian lawyer Wapona Kita broke the news of the arrest of Malawi's prominent lawyer and activist Ralph Kasambara in February on his Facebook page. The mainstream media had to follow his Facebook updates to keep their readers, listeners and viewers informed.
Armenia: Ushahidi deployed for parliamentary elections
Georgia was the first country in the South Caucasus to deploy a bespoke crowd-sourcing and crisis mapping platform for its local elections in May 2010, but Armenia will be the first to use Ushahidi to monitor the conduct of national elections in the form of the upcoming May 2012 parliamentary...
Cuba: Pope Benedict XVI Takes a Glance at Cuba's Future
Pope Benedict XVI's arrival at the western province Santiago de Cuba placed the Caribbean nation at the Twitter Trending Topics. Blogs and social media are raging with netizen's opinions on the Pope's visit to the island.
China: A New Collective Blog
Dan Harris from China Law Blog introduced a new collective blog: rectified.name in the Chinese blogosphere.
Chile: Twitter Debates Therapeutic Abortion While the Senate Waits
While the senate continues to postpone the debate over the legalization of therapeutic abortion, the exchanging of opinions has continued unabated in Chilean cyberspace, most noticeably following two televised debates on the subject.
India: The Last Handwritten Newspaper in the World
The earliest forms of newspaper were handwritten and now 'The Musalman' probably is the last handwritten newspaper in the world. This Urdu language newspaper was established in 1927 and has been published daily in the Chennai city of India ever since.
Tunisia: Bloggers Help Draft the Constitution
On October 23rd, 2011, Tunisians elected an assembly to draft its new constitution, following the toppling of the Ben Ali regime. Now, five months later, the assembly has just started studying the draft proposals. Yet, disagreements about the first article of the constitution is slowing down the work of the assembly and Islam and the Arab identity are at the heart of debates nationwide. Netizens are chipping in to help bridge the gap.
Syria: A Year On, From Beirut With Love
On March15, the Syrian revolution completed its first year with the same level of determination that marked its beginning. Protests in different cities around the world expressed their support to the revolution while Beirut wanted to announce its support in its own way. This post explains how activists expressed their love to the Syrian revolution on Beirut walls.
Egypt: The Abou Ismail Poster Frenzy
Preparations are in full swing for the presidential elections in Egypt, set for May 23 and 24, 2012, with candidates' election posters already up on the streets. But when it comes to Hazem Salah Abou-Ismail, he sure beats all the rest in the poster frenzy. His posters are almost seen almost everywhere. Netizens grasp the opportunity to make fun of the poster bonanza.
Kuwait: Could a Hash Tag Send Twitter Users to Prison?
As in any country with netizens using Twitter, hash tags are created every day, every hour and somne times even every few minutes. In Kuwait, one user created a hash tag #بطارية (battery in Arabic) and all hell broke loose. Kuwaiti blogger Abdullatif AlOmar tells us why.
El Salvador: Report of Government and Gang Negotiations Sparks Controversy
Bloggings by boz posts comments by Salvadorans he spoke to after online newspaper El Faro reported that the government had negotiated with gangs to decrease violence. Tim's El Salvador Blog explains and translates part of El Faro's article. Furthermore, Summer Harlow, in The Knight Center's Journalism in the Americas Blog,...
Cuba: Pope Arrives Today; What Will His Visit Bring?
Pope Benedict XVI is due to arrive today in Cuba, even as bloggers chronicle the “wave of arrests and threats” preceding the papal visit. But top of mind for most bloggers, particularly from the diaspora, is whether or not the pontiff will decide to meet with the Ladies in White and other members of the political opposition.
Argentina Prepares to Remember the Victims of the Falklands War
Malvinas Day is celebrated each year in Argentina on April 2. Given the current diplomatic conflict with the United Kingdom, the date is especially important this year. This is an update of opinions and reactions to the conflict.
Jamaica: Hoodie is No Excuse
“An excited man kills someone for the flimsiest of causes. And someone asks us to believe it’s due to clothing choices!”: Diaspora blogger Grasshopper Eyes The Potomac comments on the Trayvon Martin case.
Iran: Does Easing Internet Sanctions Make Any Difference?
The U.S. Department of Treasury is easing sanctions on a list of Internet services including Yahoo Messanger, Google Talk, and Skype. Although welcoming of the news, Iranians are showing only lukewarm enthusiasm.
Puerto Rico: “National Day of Salsa” in the Conservatory
The Puerto Rican Conservatory of Music joins the National Day of Salsa celebration in the island. This year, the singer Cheo Feliciano and the singer and trumpet player Jerry Medina participated along with students from the Department of Caribbean Jazz and Music. Wilma Colón shares photos of the event.
Senegal: Wade Warned New President Sall of Shortage in Public Funds
M. Ndiaye reports [fr] that Wade warned newly elected president Macky Sall that the State will not be able to pay public servant salaries if he is not re-elected. Furthermore, P. Faye adds that Wade also stated before election Day that infrastructure construction in the city of Matam and Podor will stop...
Blogger Analysis on North Korea's Expected Rocket Trajectory
North Korea Tech blog wrote about North Korea's rocket launch which is scheduled for next month. The blogger, after analyzing the International Maritime Organization's documents, predicted that the rocket will drop to earth in two stages off the western coast of South Korea and to the east of Luzon Island in the Philippines.
Mexico Hosts 13th Ibero-American Musical Culture Festival “Vive Latino”
We have gathered several opinions from the Mexican public regarding its 13th Musical Cultural Festival "Vive Latino," an international music festival that consisted of mainly Latin American bands, but also presentations of documentaries and the sale of crafts and other memorabilia.
Sri Lanka: Reactions to US Resolution at UNHRC
A US resolution was recently passed at a UN Human Rights Council meeting on Sri Lanka seeking to encourage the government to investigate allegations of human rights violations during the country's civil war against the LTTE and implement the recommendations made by a reconciliation commission. Netizens react.
