Stories from Quick Reads and Spanish
Is OpenAI biased? We checked so you won't have to
Global Voices explored how an AI image generator rendered pictures from different languages. We typed in the same phrase in nine languages and got wildly different results.
Search Coordinator for Ayotzinapa Students Assasinated
Asesinan en #México a coordinador de búsqueda de 43 normalistas de #Ayotzinapa Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco http://t.co/WMgteMU0JM Fue @EPN — PrensaRebelde (@RebeldePrenssa) August 9, 2015 Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco, coordinator of the search for the 43 Ayotzinapa teachers’ college students, was assasinated in Mexico. Miguel Ángel Jiménez Blanco, 45, was...
The ‘Escopetarra': A Killer Instrument
If you believe that nothing good can come from a rifle, then you have to get to know the “escopetarra”—a hybrid that transforms two “lethal” weapons (an AK-47 and a guitar) into an instrument of peace. “Escopetarra” is a Spanish blend that combines the words “escopeta” (shotgun) and “guitarra” (guitar). In his Spanish-language podcast,...
Public Prosecutor's Office in Colombia to Monitor Twitter Accounts of Public Servants During Elections
¿Conoce irregularidades que atenten contra la transparencia o la seguridad de las #Elecciones2015? Denuncie en: http://t.co/fiNivGSeDQ — Procuraduría General (@PGN_COL) July 25, 2015 Are you aware of any irregularities which might jeopardize the transparency or security of Elections 2015? Tell us here: On October 25, Colombians head to the polls...
Argentinian Football Fans Travel 1,500 Kilometers in a Refurbished Bus to Cheer on Their Team
Five very loyal fans of the Argentinian national football team traveled over 1,500 kilometers by land to cheer on their favorite team in the Copa América, to be hosted in Chile between June 11 and July 4, 2015. The fans departed from Mar del Plata, southwest of Buenos Aires Province, and...
If I Were FIFA President…
After the recently reelected FIFA president, the Swiss Joseph “Sepp” Blatter, surprisingly resigned on June 3 amidst a corruption scandal that hit the supreme football organization, Twitter users started to speculate not about who might become the next leader, but what would happen if they were. The result was the satiric hashtag #SiYoFueraPresidenteDeLaFIFA...
Can Abortion Be Discussed in Medellín's Metro?
Residents of the city of Medellín, Colombia, are asking themselves if the metro is the place to talk about abortion, stemming from an ad by the #ladecisiónestuya (the decision is yours) campaign that's running in the public transit system's cars, as shared by user Jaime Andrés (@JAIM3_ANDR3S): #LaDecisionEsTuya pic.twitter.com/Nbaq2zJHXn — Jaime...
At Least 48 Fatalities After Landslide Hits Colombian Village
At least 48 people were killed and an unknown number of people are missing after a landslide caused by heavy rains that hit the community of Salgar, in the Colombian department of Antioquia, in the early hours of May 18, 2015. The secretary of government of Salgar, Zulma Osorio, declared that...
Lima Orchid, a Flower Once Believed to Be Extinct, Blooms Again in the Peruvian Capital
For over 50 years, it was thought that the Lima orchid was an extinct species; but, good news comes from a team from the National Forest and Wildlife Service, which is also part of the Peruvian Ministry of Agriculture: Los especialistas encontraron ejemplares de dicha orquídea, típica de las lomas de la cuenca del...
‘I'm Not a Swindler': A Campaign Against Romani Discrimination Takes Aim at the Dictionary
On April 8, on the occasion of the International Romani People Day, the organizations that form the Romani People Council started a campaign using social networks to request the Royal Spanish Academy to change the definition of the word gitano (Spanish word for gypsy) in the dictionary. The purpose of...
Mother Regains Custody of Child Following Social Media Pressure in Ecuador
The battle of a French mother to recover her son held in Ecuador by his Ecuadorian father, a case characterized by sexism and misogyny, had been followed closely on Ecuadorian social networks. Valeria Coronel and Antonio Jurado relate for the blog Plató Mundo: Arianais Alezra, la madre de Gaspard Bruzzone, denunció hace...
Whooping Cough Epidemic Looms Over Nanti Children in Peru
The Nantis is one of the semi-nomadic communities that live in Peru. A part of them live in the townships in the upper Camisea river and the central area of the Timpía river. There are isolated families that live scattered in the upper Timpía river and the northern area of the...
Initiative Helps Children With Autism Through Surfing
Tabra is an association launched by Guillermo Ferrero and Andrea Mesones in Peru that aims to improve life quality for children with autism and Down syndrome through surfing and contact with nature, as stated on their Facebook page. Guillermo is the father of a 13-year-old boy diagnosed with autism, and...
Keeping Minors Safe Online Is Everyone's Responsibility
We live in an age in which dizzying technological advances sometimes put minors in danger. In a post on blog Mujeres Construyendo (Women Building), Gloria Serrato delves into society's responsibility to protect them and teach them the appropriate use of new technologies: Diferentes organismos han emitido iniciativas para defender a los menores de...
Travelling Radio: Sound Postcards and Histories from Cali to Panama
Performers, communicators and scientists are working together on Hacia el Litoral. Acción Colectiva (On the Way to the Littoral: Collaborative Action), an initiative to give voice to the population dwelling in the lands located between Cali (Colombia) and the border with Panama: Hacia el litoral. Acción colectiva es una práctica artística, una...
Photo of a Mexican Revolutionary Who Looks Like Pacquiao Goes Viral
A photo of a Mexican revolutionary who looks like Manny Pacquiao has gone viral few days before the Filipino boxing icon's fight today against Floyd Mayweather in Las Vegas for three champions belts (OMB, CMB y la AMB) in the welterweight division. In Twitter there were many tweets related to the picture: Resulta que el abuelo de...
A Chilean Real-Time Video App Launches at the Boston Marathon
The application RhinoBirdTV, developed by the Chilean Felipe Heusser, who founded the NGO Ciudadano Inteligente, allows users to share video experiences in real time. The makers of RhinoBirdTV hope their product will help facilitate a more democratic world by breaking down boundaries and connecting people through simple-to-distribute live videos. RhinoBirdTV chose to launch its Android version on...
The Quest for the Mexican Miracle
Against the backdrop of elections scheduled for 7 June 2015 in Mexico, Fernando Vazquez blogging on Futuros Anticipados reflects on the quest for a miracle in development, growth and honesty, at times hindered by apathy and inaction of some. […] se firmó el TLC, se adelgazó al estado, se privatizó la industria pública....
‘Nappies in Adolescence': Alarming Number of Pregnant Teens in Venezuela
Desireé Lozano, blogging for Voces Visibles, urges attention be paid to the extremely high rate of teenage pregnancies in Venezuela, where 25% of the pregnancies are among young people, and the lack of an appropriate public policy to counter this phenomenon and its repercussions. Venezuelan statistics are the highest in South America...
Chilean Volcano Wakes Up After Four Decades of Inactivity With Violent, Spectacular Eruption
The Chilean government declared a state of emergency caused by the disaster in towns near the Calbuco volcano, in southern Chile and on the border with Argentina, after it erupted violently Wednesday. The people of Puerto Montt, Puerto Varas, Frutillar in Chile and Villa La Angostura, San Martin de los Andes...
Colombia's Festival on the Value of Data in Development
The Cartagena Data Festival has just wrapped up in Cartagena, Colombia. The festival is an international event committed to discussing data deployment for human development and related topics, like open data, data journalism, big data, and other analysis tools. The festival, which ran from April 20 to April 22 and took place in...