· May, 2007

Stories about Media & Journalism from May, 2007

Sudan: pressure on China is mandatory

  21 May 2007

Cooper, blogging at Hell on Earth, notes: “To keep pressure on China is mandatory. It is also mandatory for major news organizations and little bitty blogs to keep noting the very large part the government in Khartoum plays in the displacement, starvation, rape and murder of it’s own people.”

Hong Kong: B.T. piracy case appeal rejected

  21 May 2007

The Court of Final Appeal dismissed the appeal of Chan Nai-ming, who had been convicted and sentenced to three months’ jail for uploading infringing movies to the Internet by using the BitTorrent peer-to-peer file-sharing program. Charles Mok comments that even some individuals have abused the technology, the direction of prosecution...

Hong Kong: judicial independence with a special Hong Kong characteristic?

  21 May 2007

ESWN put together information, mainstream news reports and blogpost that investigate the accountability of the Hong Kong Obscene Articles Tribunal and found out that the so-called judicial independence of the Tribunal is highly questionable: the adjudicators are self-selected volunteers and they are giving interview with the mainstream media on the...

Hong Kong: From Indecent Student Magazine to Indecent Bible

  20 May 2007

The campaign against the Bible was started by an anonymous website, truthbible, on 15 of May to protest against the Obscene Articles Tribunal's (OAT) internim ruling that two issues of Chinese University's student paper were indecent. Uptill now, the website has received 2041 complaints, while the Television and Entertainment Licensing...

Beheadings, Shoot-outs and Baby Dumping: Where is Japan heading?

  19 May 2007

News stories covered this week by the mainstream news media in Japan have shaken Japanese society, with many wondering where their country is heading and what has happened to the nation's youth. Most sensational among these stories is the shocking tale of a high-school boy who killed and beheaded his...

Cameroon: Diaspora-homeland collaboration in online publishing

  19 May 2007

A success story of Diaspora-homeland collaboration: “The Post’s collaboration between the hard copy as content provider and its US-based site owners as administrator, demonstrates an alternative (even if unconventional) model of publishing online. It simultaneously illustrates how the skills of the Cameroonian diasporic community are being appropriated towards the homeland...

Serbian “Prayer” Wins Eurovision Song Contest

Just a few days ago, major news outlets reported that the main course of discussion at the Serbian Assembly session was to determine which political party is supported by the 2007 Eurovision winner, Marija Serifovic. Milutin Mrkonjic, who presided at the meeting, invited the singer to visit the parliament. When she came in, Mrkonjic said, “Fellow deputies, please turn around and greet Marija Serifovic. We will be having a short break. Let all of us go to the lobby to have a juice with our Marija.” Serbian bloggers have been discussing various aspects of Serifovic's victory, too, of course, and Ljubisa Bojic translates some of the reactions.

Iraq: Al Jazeera Bending to US Pressure

Iraqi blogger Lady Bird claims that Qatari-based Al Jazeera is being forced to bend to pressure from the US. “Reported today the board members of Aljazeera were removed [including Chief director Wadah Khanfar] and a totally new board was established appointed by the Emir of Qatar directly.The rumors are that...

China: Citizen blogger treading new ground?

  18 May 2007

With all the hype and money behind web 2.0 citizen media in America, is it possible that one young Chinese vegetable farmer has been able to make more gains more quickly than any Western initiatives have?

Brazil: The Once and Future(?) King

  18 May 2007

There are two kings in Brazil. Pelé, the world famous football star, and Roberto Carlos, a great icon of Brazilian popular music (MPB). The singer and songwriter acquired fame as the main figure of the 60’s musical movement known as Jovem Guarda — Young Guard — in opposition to the ‘old guard’ of Brazilian music. But late last year, the launch of an unauthorized biography has made this King go to war. Confirming the Brazilian saying that “once King, you’ll never loose the majesty”, Roberto Carlos has recently succeeded in a legal settlement with the writer — historian Paulo César de Araújo — and his publisher where all the unsold books will be called back to him, and the book will never again be published. But then… there is the Internet.

China: Xiamen University

  18 May 2007

Rosu writes about a recent signature campaign by experts and professors in Xiamen university to stop a grand polluted project in Xiamen. Even though it is yet to know the result of the campaign, the writer concluded that [zh] “When local government's power overrules public opinion, one person's fever would...

The EU: “The ‘Balkans’ They Love to Hate”

TOL's The nEUrosis critiques a Times’ story on the EU's newest members: “But rather than explaining the situation, the article goes on to provide no explanation or example why Bulgaria and Romania are in such a sordid state. In the same vein, anyone could say the same about any country...

Arabeyes: Memorial Translations

Whether it was a genuine mistake or part of a calculated propaganda strategy, the Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI) sure has a lot of explanation to do as bloggers across the region started questioning their motives this week after glaring mistakes were spotted in the translation of a Palestinian children's television programme.

Jordan: Arab Media Watchdog

Jordanian blogger Lina links to a news article which says that journalists from five Arab countries are to launch a media watchdog group in reaction to what they call increased restrictions on press workers in the region. According to the article, 20 reporters from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Morocco and...

Morocco's first English-language newspaper

The View from Fez was the bearer of good news this morning, informing us that Morocco has finally released its first English-language print newspaper. Although international papers are available in Morocco, and Magharebia.com and Maghreb Arabe Presse provide anglophones with news on the internet, there's nothing better than settling into...

China: Internet politics

  17 May 2007

Joel Martinsen from DANWEI translates an interview with Yu Guoming, a vice-dean of the Renmin University School of Journalism and head of that university's Public Opinion Research Institute, on Internet and politics, published at Globe magazine.

Nigeria: Naija Bloggers – The Book

  17 May 2007

A call to Nigerian bloggers to be part of a book called, Naija Bloggers Vol. 1: “This is a call to all Nigerian bloggers worldwide to become a part of An anthology of the greatest works of Nigerian Bloggers-A book called Naija bloggers Vol 1. Nigerian Bloggers around the globe...