Stories from 7 October 2010
Macedonia: Human Rights Activist Accused of Libel
Žarko Trajanoski, a human rights expert and activist, posted a scan of EUR 50.000 libel lawsuit [MKD] against him by a TV talk show host Milenko Nedelkovski. The defendant allegedly damaged the pro-government media personality's reputation by qualifying his calls to “liquidate” “traitors” as hate speech, and considers this act...
Russia: Bloggers Meet With Iranian Ambassador, Avoid Sensitive Topics
The meeting of Russia's top-bloggers with the Iranian Ambassador in Moscow three days after Hossein Derakhshan had been sentenced to 19.5 years of imprisonment for "anti-government propaganda" highlighted the clumsy attempts of the Iranian online diplomacy in Russia. It also showed commercialization and excessive cynicism of some of the popular Russian bloggers.
Peru: Mario Vargas Llosa is Awarded Nobel Prize in Literature
On Thursday October 7, Peruvians woke up to what has been called the "News of the Year": Mario Vargas Llosa was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of the individual's resistance, revolt, and defeat." The Peruvian blogosphere quickly reacted to the news, and "Mario Vargas Llosa" has been a worldwide Twitter trending topic for almost 12 hours.
Senegal: Wade's Son Takes Over Energy Ministry as Power Outage Increases
Seneweb reports that power outages are becoming increasingly problematic in Senegal [fr]. More protests come about as food cannot be conserved without electricity. President Wade's son, Karim Wade has been assigned the Energy ministry in addition to his other duties as minister of International Cooperation, Territorial Management, Aerian Transport and...
Russia: Recent Flash Mob Leaves Male Users Guessing
Recent flash mob on Vkontakte.ru, the most popular Russian social network, consisted of female users changing their online statuses to what would start with “And I love doing it on…” and adding the places where they usually leave their bags. The double meaning of this sentence immediately attracted the attention...
Chile: Podcast Interview with Creator of Blog ‘Zancada’
El Quinto Poder [es] interviewed [es] Paty Leiva, creator of the blog Zancada [es], the most widely read blog written by and for young women in Chile.
Angola: Angola's Most Famous Slave Trader
Angola’s most famous slave trader Dona Anna Joaquina will be the topic of the Angola Field Group’s presentation Thursday, October 14 at 8:00 PM at the Viking Club in Luanda, Angola.
Nigeria: Fela's music is the weapon Nigeria needs
Remembering Fela Kuti and the relevance of his music in Nigeria: “Whenever there is a crisis or any news of injustice in Nigeria my mind goes to Fela and I wish he was still here to articulate events through his music. His music and his words reached all sections of...
Tanzania: Crowdmapping 2010 Tanzania Elections
Vijana FM radio station in Tanzania uses Ushahidi to collect reports on the 2010 Tanzania elections.
Tanzania: NGOs and the media in Tanzania
Peter discusses the relationship between Non-Governmental Organisations and the media in Tanzania: “NGOs are increasingly working out how to deal with the media: at the crude end wondering what the market rate for a brown envelope is, to more sophisticated relationships with editors and writers.”
Nigeria: Internet entrepreneurs meetup
Nigerian Internet entrepreneurs will meet this weekend in Lagos: “This is the first meet-up of Nigerian Internet Entrepreneurs. It is an avenue for Nigerians that are creating startups to come meet themselves and have some beers.”
Ecuador: Breast Cancer Awareness Month
Pitonizza [es] writes about Breast Cancer Awareness Month, reporting on events that will take place in different Ecuadorian cities to try to raise awareness.
Russia: Blogger's Car Vandalized after Youtube Video
Dgudkov tells about threats he received and, as an evidence, supplies [RUS] a picture of his car vandalized by the unknown. The threats, he says, are connected with the recently published video [RUS] named “Our Mexican Bay” that depicts oil spill authorities refuse to acknowledge.
Bolivia: Video Interview with Bolivian Blogger and Twitter User Vania Balderrama
Hugo Miranda from Angelcaido interviewed [es] blogger [es] and Twitter user Vania Balderrama (@capsuliana). In the video interview, Vania talks about blogging, Twitter, women and technology, and what it means to be Bolivian.
Peru: Mario Vargas Llosa Wins Nobel Prize for Literature
The Latin Americanist reports: “This morning, Peru's Mario Vargas Llosa was announced as the winner of the 2010 Nobel Prize in Literature. According to the Nobel Prize's website the journalist, essayist, and playwright received such a prestigious accolade ‘for his cartography of structures of power and his trenchant images of...
St. Vincent & the Grenadines: Failing the Children
A young boy recently committed suicide while a teenaged girl tried and failed, leaving Abeni to comment: “Too often, children battle abandonment, sexual molestations, emotional and physical abuse in a period of their development that should be carefree…those who are supposed to be their caregivers have become their abusers leaving...
Puerto Rico: Cancer of Corruption
Of the news that “the largest FBI corrupt policemen investigation is going down in Puerto Rico“, Gil the Jenius says that the reason local authorities couldn't handle the case themselves is “because corruption has become the norm in Puerto Rico and no local agency could ever hope to make headway...
Trinidad & Tobago: Eighth Wonder
“Does the Wonders of the World list go past seven? If so the Pitch Lake would definitely be included”: MEP Caribbean Publishers visits La Brea.
Jamaica: Bail for Buju?
As the judge presiding over the Buju Banton drug trial considers whether the singer should be granted bail, Girl With a Purpose says: “Many Jamaicans and those who love Jamaica and Reggae music are still holding our breaths…”
Jamaica: Don't Blame Nicole
In the wake of Tropical Storm Nicole, owensoft.net says: “It's not all Nicole's fault…if you look at the situation closely most of the road infrastructure simply was not designed to handle long periods of rain fall.”
China: Guanxi
David Wolf from Silicon Hutong reproduced some discussions among China Business circle on their understanding of Guanxi in doing business in China.
