Stories about Technology from October, 2010
Russia: Report on Geography of Russian Internet
Russian Sphinx highlights a report issues by the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM) on the geography of the Russian internet.
India: Mobile Phones & Security
In India, “nine out of ten women reported feeling safer due to their mobile phones”, informs Priyanka Matanhelia, who is researching on mobile phone usage amongst youth.
Lebanon: Is Facebook being used to recruit spies?
From Lebanon, The Identity Chef Darine Sabbagh finds a link on her Facebook page asking for information on missing Israeli soldiers and notes: “Now honestly, things like these really make you think twice about your online activity and how your online information can be misused and how you can be...
Saudi Arabia: Online Impressions
From Saudi Arabia, The Eternal Philosopher Duha Husseini offers us an insight on “online impressions.” She adds: “I remember a time when 99% of Saudi internet users used aliases, including myself, for fear we might be judged based on what we share online. That has now changed.”
Jordan: Are You Spending Too Much Time on Twitter?
From Jordan, Rand lists 10 signs which show that you are spending too much time on Twitter.
D.R. of Congo: Mobile Phone Light Saves Life of a Mother
Mobile phone light saves life of a mother in Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo: “Everyone is healthy in the end, but she was required to undergo a C-section. Apparently during the operation, the electricity at the hospital went out, and there was somehow no petrol on hand to run...
Egypt: Bad Bad Facebook
A TV show discussing Facebook on the Egyptian state-run television channel soon became the source for rumours, mockery, and loads of fun on blogs and Twitter. Tarek Amr has more in this round up of reactions from Egyptian netizens.
Serbia: Two Internet Entrepreneurs Detained for Months Without Trial
Danica Radisic writes about the plight of Internet entrepreneurs Djordje Djokic and Dusan Jaglicic, who have been in jail for the past eight months, with no possibility of bail, no trial and no legal conviction, and about the implications of their case for the Serbian online community.
Chile: Interview with Twitter's @laura
Journalist Miguel Paz interviewed [es] Laura Gómez (@laura), Twitter's International Support Lead and Spanish Language Specialist.
Nicaragua: Open Government and the Evolution of e-Government
Juan Ortega writes [es] about the book Open Government [es] by César Calderón and Sebastián Lorenzo. He briefly explains what Nicaragua needs to do to improve transparency.
Tanzania: Running for Office While Combining Kangas With Social Media
Danish blogger Pernille Bærendtsen looks at the use of traditional elements and social media in Tanzania election campaigns focusing on Zitto Kabwe, the parliamentary candidate for Kigoma North. Her post is titled "Running for Office (While Combining Kangas and Social Media). Kanga is a piece of printed cotton fabric worn by women and occasionally by men throughout Eastern Africa.
Puerto Rico: Presenting the reputable online paper “The Yam”
They are definitely funny. Not to mention that the often absurd and surreal Puerto Rican political landscape gives them plenty of material. They are El Cangrimán, El Rata and Oscar Marrano, the three main writers of the Puerto Rican online-based paper El Ñame.
Brazil: Open Call for Digital Culture
Brazilian Digital Culture Forum calls all enthusiasts to submit presentations about emerging processes in the network, communities of practice for the digital age and proposals to support public policies, until October 20. The 2nd edition of the Forum will take place in November 14-17 in Sao Paulo.
Brazil: Magazine censored by opposition party
The magazine Revista do Brasil, produced by the Rede Brasil Atual, has been censored by the opposition party, PSDB and its candidate, José Serra, for allegedly campaigning in favour of rival candidate Dilma Rousseff, informs [pt] Conceição Oliveira, in her blog, Maria Frô. Rede released [pt] a note repudiating the opposition's...
Benin: Text Messages to Help Protect Children Against Violence: Lessons Learned
The Violence Against Children (VAC) project is an initiative co-implemented by PLAN and Save the Children in West Africa and takes place over 4 years in seven countries. The project explored the idea of setting up a text message based system that will collect and map out reports of violence against children. The following is a discussion about the impact and lessons learned on the implementation so far.
Jamaica: A Year of Blogging
“Using social media has provided us with [a] very rewarding and effective way to communicate with existing and new audiences…”: National Gallery of Jamaica Blog celebrates its first birthday.
Africa: Growth, Innovation and Transport
Stephen writes about growth, innovation and transport in the development of Sub Saharan Africa economies: “Many people recognize that access to adequate transport services is vital for development. Since 1987, the Sub-Saharan Africa Transport Policy Program (SSATP)—a partnership driven by 36 countries—has been working with governments and regional organizations to...
Russian Newsweek Closes
Closure of Russian Newsweek provoked a lively reaction [RUS] among bloggers. One of the reasons for it is that the majority of Russian Newsweek's staff had blogs. Photomans posts [RUS] his press passes, Anticompromat complains that the whole archive of the magazine is inaccessible now, BFM explains why the closure...
Russia: Photos of Children's Camp Decorated as a Social Network
Habrahabr user goodsprite posts pictures of the children's summer camp. Author, who worked at the camp, claimed that children had to register in Russian social network Vkontakte.ru. Photos depict camp's wallpapers decorated by hand-drawn illustrations of Vkontakte.ru interface and various applications like “Happy Farmer” (analogue of “Farmwille”).
South Korea:A Star Anchor Threatens To Sue a Twitterer.
South Korea’s star anchorwoman, Kim Ju-ha made headlines as she threatens to file a defamation lawsuit against a tweeter who called her “brainless.” Many Twitterers are condemning her reaction as ‘neurotic’. The KoreaTimes translated and summarized a heated debate going on at Korean Twitter.
Jordan: The ArabCrunch Controversy Continues
ArabCrunch was founded in 2008. The blog launched its Arabic version in 2009, and quickly became a leading blog in the Arab tech sector. Jordanian netizens react to controversies surrounding the site and allegations made by its founder in this post.
