Iranian blogger Kamangir, currently living in Canada, tells us about a particular sub-set in the Islamic Republic: My friend is fascinated by a community of bloggers she tends to call the “Shooshoo Joon”s. The name can be translated to “My Beloved Husband” but I assure you that the Persian expression she uses is more than…
Showing all posts tagged blogging
Analysis must not be a war casualty
My following article appears on ABC’s Unleashed: The Iraq war has virtually dropped off the media radar. The country remains far more dangerous than Afghanistan and yet Barack Obama’s “surge” against the Taliban and al-Qaeda is the biggest international story of the day. Even leading neo-conservative William Kristol writes in The Washington Post that Obama…
Raul Castro can’t crush all signs of dissent
Human rights in Cuba are grim. But as I discovered in The Blogging Revolution, bloggers are starting to challenge the government’s strangehold on information. We should therefore welcome news of the Bloggers Cuba group one year anniversary with optimism. Here’s Zorphdark: A couple of hours after the boring midday of May, I received the only…
The net is the best way to bring us to the world and vice versa
Evgeny Morozov writes a fascinating blog about the internet and democracy on Foreign Policy. His latest essay for the magazine is a moving article that in many ways confirms the thesis of my book, The Blogging Revolution, namely that the web doesn’t on its own bring democracy but can undoubtedly radically re-shape global access to…
The Jakarta Post: Changing people’s perceptions about Jews
The following feature by Desy Nurhayati appears in yesterday’s Jakarta Post: His recent visit to Aceh made Antony Loewenstein the first Jew that most people in the country’s devoutly Muslim province had ever met or engaged with. Some Acehnese he met were surprised to learn that the Jewish-Australian journalist, author of the controversial and best-selling…
I love Israel so much, says US anti-Semitism fighter
Here’s a fun job to have. Hannah Rosenthal, former head of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, started this week as the State Department’s Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti-Semitism. Oh joy. Tablet Magazine asks her to respond to critics (and note how many times she has to say she loves Israel, just to…
Iranians still breathing towards freedom
Despite all the obstacles, dissent in the Islamic Republic powers on: Iranian opposition leader Mirhossein Mousavi said yesterday that the reform movement would not be cowed by the hardline government’s harsh methods as riot police prevented a demonstration by moderates taking place. Mr Mousavi’s remarks preceded a scheduled gathering by moderates to commemorate the killing…
The ghost of Bill Gates in the shadow of helping the Communist Party
My book The Blogging Revolution thoroughly examines the complicity of Western multinationals such as Google, Microsoft and Yahoo in assisting online censorship in oppressive regimes. Nicholas Kristof in his blog on the New York Times discovers how shocking this situation has become. Lesson for the day; never trust the word of corporate executives (especially when…
Cubans deserve far better than this
The human rights situation in Cuba – something I examined in my book The Blogging Revolution – remains dire. Some prominent bloggers on the island were recently abused for simply speaking out. Now, according to Human Rights Watch, the regime continues to oppress its people: The Cuban president, Raúl Castro, has crushed dissent and continued…
Is Washington’s peace process over?
My latest New Matilda column is about the failure of the two-state solution: With hopes for a two-state solution waning, the resignation of Mahmoud Abbas is prompting new calls for a one-state solution, writes Antony Loewenstein The decision of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to resign and not stand in proposed January elections is a blessing…