Online dissidents in authoritarian states such as Egypt thrive on sites like Facebook, according to Harvard University’s Ethan Zuckerman, because, “the government can’t simply shut down Facebook, because doing so would alert a large group of people who they can’t afford to radicalize.” It is the Dictator’s Dilemma, an issue I cover extensively in my…
Showing all posts tagged censorship
Being on the wrong side of history
The British broadcaster is both gutless and clearly petrified of the pernicious Zionist lobby: The BBC has refused to broadcast a national humanitarian appeal for Gaza, leaving aid agencies with a potential shortfall of millions of pounds in donations. The Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), an umbrella group for 13 aid charities, launched its appeal yesterday…
Closing the net
The following news story, by Peter Hackney, appeared in leading gay publication SX on January 21: With the mandatory internet filtering trial to begin any day now, Peter Hackney explores what it might mean for our community. The words ”˜gay’ and ”˜lesbian’ are hardly offensive. They merely describe a sexual orientation. But as any journalist…
The secret hand enters once again
What is the power of the Zionist lobby in Australia? Are there limits to free speech over Israel/Palestine? If stereotyping Jews is anti-Semitism (and it certainly can be), what about doing the same to the Muslim community?
How to look up democracy in the phone book
My recent book, The Blogging Revolution, continues to extend its reach. The Prospects of Cyberocracy, a post by US-based academic Patrick Meier – a Harvard-based Fellow who works on “conflict early warning and crisis mapping” – explains the ways in which the internet can impact democracy-promotion around the world. Meier is using my book, amongst…
Propaganda for the converted
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps have launched a plan to start 10,000 blogs for the paramilitary Basij forces as a counter-weight to the perceived liberalism of the country’s blogosphere.
The net effect
The following essay about the web and my book The Blogging Revolution, by Richard King, appeared in the Sydney Morning Herald on January 3: Good, bad or a bit of both? Richard King asks whether the internet serves us, or we serve it. Perhaps new technologies meet with suspicion because of the perception they extend…
Castro can’t stand in the way
50 years after the Cuban Revolution, repression remains rife on the island. A growing number of bloggers are fighting back, however, and daring to speak out.
So much for free speech
The Iranian press watchdog shut down leading reformist newspaper Kargozaran on Wednesday over publication of a piece criticising Palestinian militants, the official IRNA news agency reported.