Stories from 12 March 2013
Mercedes for President of Dilapidated Slovak University
Blogger Tomáš Homola blogs [sk] about a new Mercedes Benz E car recently acquired for 63,096 Euros for Professor Karol Mičieta [sk], the Rector/President of Comenius University in Bratislava. Homola...
World Day Against Cyber Censorship
March 12 is World Day Against Cyber Censorship. Reporters Without Borders and other advocates for Internet rights are calling on activists, movements and organizations around the world to participate by reminding their constituents of the importance of protecting free expression online.
Indian Censor Board Restricts Papilio Buddha, A Gandhi Critic Movie
Papilio Buddha, a Malaylam language feature film, had initially been banned by the Indian censor board for defaming the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi until it got cleared for screening with the “adult” certification. Netizens question the decision of the censor board and the underlying reason.
Iran: Foreign VPNs Blocked
Several blogs and news sites reported that Iranian authorities have blocked many foreign-based virtual private networks, or VPNs, severely restricting access to many websites.
Propaganda & Mystery in Russia's Browder-Magnitsky Case
Conspiracies are the stuff of Russian politics, and the anarchy of online political discourse makes the RuNet an especially exciting place to watch conspiracy theories unfold. Consider Bill Browder and the late Sergei Magnitsky, the two key figures in a multimillion-dollar tax fraud scam. For years, Russian federal investigators and Browder’s firm have traded accusations about who’s to blame for the theft of 230 million dollars.
The Curious Case of Hugo Chávez and Peru
As we all know, Hugo Chávez, president of Venezuela, died on March 5. But what we are perhaps less familiar with is the symbiotic relationship between Chávez and Peru.
Challenges in Learning a Foreign Language
Eileen from the blog Bearshapedsphere writes about language learning and how native speakers can sometimes be insulting or “diminish the value of good performance by minimizing the effort that’s put...
São Tomé and Príncipe's Youth Skeptical of Government Promises
On March 6, 2013, the Minister of Youth and Sports of Sao Tome and Principe, Albertino Fernandes, presented the government's intention to train three thousand athletes, to create one thousand...
Myanmar's Exiled Broadcaster to Return Home
Democratic Voice of Burma or DVB, which has been broadcasting news about the democracy movement in Myanmar from its head office in Oslo for more than 21 years, has announced...
Digitizing the National Library of Vietnam
Since 2006, the the National Library of Vietnam has partnered with the Vietnamese Nôm Preservation Foundation to digitally preserve the special collection of the library which features some 4000 ancient...
Thousands of Dead Pigs Found Floating in Shanghai River
Thousands of dead pigs have been found floating in the Huangpu River, which flows through the middle of Shanghai. While the local authorities asserted that the dead pigs have not polluted the city's water supply, people are skeptical of these claims.
Video: Chinese Journalist Fights Censorship
Committee to Protect Journalists features a special report about media censorship in China. In the report, Jonah Kessel tells a video story about Chinese Journalist Liu Jianfeng who reports on social...
Video: The 70's Generation in China
WORDS OF A GENERATION records personal stories and perspectives from the 70's generation in China who grew up on the perimeter of China's past and live at the forefront of...
TV Journalist Attacked In Maldives
Ibrahim ‘Aswad’ Waheed, Head of News of Raaje TV, an independent television channel, was attacked by unidentified persons recently in the Maldivian capital Male. Maldivian journalists joined in protests demanding...
