Stories from 28 August 2011
Japan: Trends in the blogging service landscape
Netaful shares observations [ja] from a recent comScore report [ja/pdf] that in terms of visitor count, livedoor blogs have surpassed Ameba Blogs. The report concludes that even with the spread of SNS, “Japan remains one of the world's leading blog markets“.
Saudi Arabia: A Special Twitter Hashtag for the King!
A Saudi hashtag entitled #tal3mrak which literary translates into “May god prolong your life” or “your majesty” if translated into a Western context, took Twitter by storm today. The hashtag came as a surprise to those who never thought Saudi netizens would have the courage to address their authorities via social media.
Central African Republic: Violence Marks Lead Up to Elections
The Central African Republic is set to hold partial parliamentary elections on September 4, yet tensions have arisen after an opposition party rally was marred with violence. The country is still recovering from violent conflicts that started in the late 1990s. Lova Rakotomalala reports.
Nepal: A New Prime Minister
United We Blog! for a Democratic Nepal reports that Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) leader Dr. Baburam Bhattarai has been elected the 35th Prime Minister of Nepal. The previous Prime Minister Mr. Jhala Nath Khanal of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) resigned on August 15th after serving...
Egypt: Omar Soliman Facebook Army
A poll conducted by the Supreme Council of Armed Forces on their Facebook page to see how much support each of the potential Egyptian presidential elections candidates had on the ground yielded 'fishy' results. Here are reactions online after news emerged that a Facebook army was hired to tweak them.
South Korea: Pop Music Censorship Meets with Strong Opposition
More than 2,600 South Korean pop songs have been censored in the past two years for their "hazardous" lyrics. One entertainment agency, however, filed a lawsuit against the government that deemed its singer’s album as ‘inappropriate for youths’ and won the case. The decision was widely welcomed by Korean public.
Madagascar: Minister of Population Ramaroson and 10 others Drown in a Boat Accident
Minister of Population and Social Affairs Nadine Ramaroson and 10 other people died on Sunday in a boat accident near the island of Saint-Marie (North East of Madagascar) during a whale watching event. Although not always in agreement with her political stand, Blogger Aryel Elyah pays tribute to Mrs Ramaroson's...
Puerto Rico: New Cultural Magazine
The School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Communications of the Universidad Metropolitana (Umet) has launched Revista Cruce [es] focused on contemporary sociocultural critique.
Singapore Elects New President
Dr Tony Tan was elected Singapore's seventh president on August 27 with a winning margin of only 7,269 votes. This was enough to beat the three other candidates in Singapore’s first presidential election in 18 years.
Cameroon: Deeply homophobic laws
Talking about risk of toughening the law on homosexuality in Cameroon, the bonaberi.com site reveals [fr] that: “While the first paragraph of Section 347-1 of the penal code banned homosexuality, the second and third sections state sentences of up to eight years for homosexuality committed by minors between 16 and...
Iran: Protests to Save Lake Urmia Reignited
Once again protesters have poured again into streets of Tabriz and Urmia in Iran's Azerbaijan region on Sunday to call on the Iranian government to save the dying Urmia Lake.
Pakistan: Praying For Shahbaz Taseer
Shahbaz Taseer, the son of slain Punjab Governor Salman Taseer, was kidnapped in the broad day light in Lahore. Many Pakistani netizens are sharing their shock and are joining in prayers for his return; but one wonders, will prayers work for the young Taseer?
Mexico Mourns Casino Royale Victims on Twitter
The attack and fire in Casino Royale in Monterrey, Mexico, resulted in 52 casualties, in another event further tied to violence from organized crime. Twitter users look for their relatives and friends, and cry over this tragedy.
