· April, 2011

Stories about Media & Journalism from April, 2011

Puerto Rico: ‘Speak Your Mind’ Online

  25 April 2011

Under the slogan "Speak your Mind," the online magazine Qiibo covers everyday Puerto Rican politics and the latest entertainment and technology news. Global Voices author Cesar Santiago interviewed the staff about their interests, their place within Puerto Rico's online media, the possibility of alliances with traditional media, and the Puerto Rican blogosphere.

Citizen Journalism from Tibet

  25 April 2011

“The Story Behind the Story” on Radio Free Asia looks at recent video footage that was taken by a Tibetan citizen journalist. The footage, smuggled out of Tibet, appears to have been taken using an iPhone and was received by RFA in QuickTime format. It refutes China's state media pronouncements...

Belarus, Ukraine: “Chernobyl: The First Month”

  23 April 2011

At OpenDemocracy.net, Barys Piatrovich, a Belarusian writer and journalist, recalls the first month after the Chernobyl catastrophe of April 26, 1986: “It was difficult for me to write this text. I've been working up to it for over twenty years. More than once I have started to write but given...

Maldives: Competency of Maldives Media

  22 April 2011

Hassan Ziyau criticizes the Maldives media by questioning their competency and the standard of the editors and their playing of a puppet role for the businessmen and the politicians.

Central Asia: “Cyber Chaikhana,” Book Written by Bloggers

  22 April 2011

"Cyber Chaikhana" is a book project about Central Asian bloggers and their perceptions of their region, culture and everyday life. Edited by Christopher Schwartz and published by HIVOS, the book is a collection of narratives written by the bloggers at NewEurasia.net, the Central Asian blogging network. The aim of the project is to reach out to both the Central Asian (Russian speaking) and global audiences.

Libya: Remembering Photojournalists Hetherington and Hondros

  22 April 2011

Award-winning, renowned war photojournalists Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros were killed in action on April 20, 2011, in Misrata, while covering the chaotic frontline of the Libyan conflict. Fellow professionals mourned their slain colleagues, and reminisced on two lives lived in full, and in peril, in the pursuit of truth, while all major photography outlets paid tribute to their work.

Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago: REDjet Delay

  21 April 2011

“People don’t take kindly when you make newspaper announcements that you’re coming for dinner, but you didn’t bother to inform the host”: Barbados Free Press blogs about new regional carrier REDjet's apparent failure to comply with licensing processes in Trinidad and Tobago.

Cuba: Fonseca Released

  21 April 2011

“The publicity on Facebook, Twitter and blogs only intensified…”: Uncommon Sense says that the release of Cuban human rights activist Sara Martha Fonseca “is a victory for freedom.”

Bermuda: Shrinking Population = Shrinking Economy?

  21 April 2011

In the face of declining local retail sales, Vexed Bermoothes believes that “the real reason for the anaemic economy is that Bermuda’s population has shrunk … and that the local economy has shrunk correspondingly.”

China: The Murder Case of Yao Jiaxin

  21 April 2011

Over the past few months, the cold-blooded murder of a young woman, Zhang Miao, by affluent music student Yao Jiaxin, has been the most heated topic on the Chinese Internet. On the eve of the verdict in the murder trial, propaganda authorities have demanded that all media outlets use the Xinhua report as their only news source, as well as to monitor all related online discussions.

China: Facebook's PR strategy

  21 April 2011

Bill Bishop at DigiCha and Imagethief's Will Moss ruminate on Facebook's PR strategy as speculation grows over the social networking site's possible entry into the Chinese market.

Azerbaijan: Protest to demand journalist's release

  20 April 2011

Mark Grigorian [RU] posts photographs of today's protest demonstration outside the Azerbaijani Embassy in London in support of imprisoned journalist and Amnesty International prisoner of conscience Eynulla Fatullayev. Marking the forth anniversary since his arrest, the blog notes that when the European Court of Human Rights ruled that he was...

South Korea: Search Engine Censorship Claims

  20 April 2011

As South Korea's biggest search engines file an anti-competition charge against Google, net users have started to look back at the various companies' contributions to the Korean net environment. The nation's most visited portal, Naver, has come under particular fire for alleged news screening and censorship of information, along with its monopoly in the field.

Madagascar: Censorship Comes in Different Shapes and Sizes

  20 April 2011

Blogger Achille52 reviews the state of media and free speech in Madagascar (fr), detailing the different manners in which bloggers are harassed (also explained in an  Amnesty International report). He also explains that he deactivated his blog after he was told by a police officer that people are looking for...

Global: Bloggers Take Issue with Anti-Niqaab Punditry

On April 16, 2011, France's ban on the niqaab and burqa went into effect, re-stirring emotions on the subject and sparking protests in the European country and beyond. In cyberspace, bloggers are taking issue with popular pundits on the subject, focusing particular attention on Egyptian journalist Mona Eltahawy's pro-niqaab ban stance.