Imagine a steady stream of immigrants, traveling across a vast ocean to a foreign country, searching for new jobs and better lives. But the immigrants are Americans, and the country they are moving to… is China! SHANGHAI CALLING is a romantic comedy about modern-day American immigrants in an unfamiliar land. When an ambitious New York [...]
Archive | January, 2013
JAPAN: New Year, New Government, Same Issues
Both the passage of time and the ushering in of new leaders have proven to be fruitless in the alleviation of the tension felt in East Asia. It may be well into the new year, but the ties between Japan and China continue to exhibit signs of deterioration thanks to the Senkaku or, as they’re [...]
SINGAPORE: Let’s Make Babies
Singapore’s biological clock is ticking, and she will do whatever it takes to have more babies. The young nation is encouraging couples to marry and have babies to increase the Singaporean population. The government has increased its Marriage and Parenthood budget from $1.6 billion to $2 billion. Some benefits include one week of paternity leave [...]
MYANMAR: A New Era
Myanmar, previously known as Burma, has seen its media arena evolve in the past six months. After decades of political unrest, the country is seeing some promising reforms. Contrary to the present law, the government has announced that on April 1, privately owned newspapers will formally be allowed to issue daily prints instead of weekly [...]
KUWAIT: Imprisoned for Tweeting
Freedom of speech continues to be challenged in the Middle East, as two Kuwaiti males, Ayyad al-Harbi and Rashed al-Enezi, were recently arrested for insulting the Amir of the country, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, on Twitter. Harbi, who has created a name for himself in Kuwait, was given his sentence two months after he was [...]
MYANMAR: Retractable Reform
If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. This is abundantly evident in the case of Reporters Without Borders (RWB), the media rights group, who has called for reform in Myanmar’s media. The Bangkok Post recently reported that this group has urged Myanmar to fulfill their pledge of a freer media. [...]
China Blog Blotter: Too Soon for Equal Rights?
“Gays Dare to Love” was the slogan for the Equal Rights for Gays Parade that took place in Hong Kong recently. Much like America’s own Pride Parades, Equal Rights for Gays Parade is public, loud, and flamboyant. Although parades like these have happened in the past in Hong Kong, this one was especially high in [...]
NEW ZEALAND: Green for Profit?
New Zealand’s popularity as a tourist destination relies on its natural beauty and flawless scenery. The Government has chosen to market itself to tourists on this basis, with a clean, green brand. However, according to the New Zealand Herald, the Government has not been supporting the green brand like it claims to, and has been [...]
PHILIPPINES: The Time Is Now
The Freedom of Information Bill (FOI) has sparked much controversy in the past few weeks. The bill was originally introduced in 2010, but due to lack of quorum, was not passed. Recently, the FOI bill has incited debate between legislators and members of the press regarding whether or not it will infringe on the right [...]
CHINA: A Glorious Print Revolution
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) publicity chief recently accentuated efforts to improve the media’s reporting style during an inspection tour of the Party’s flagship newspaper. Liu Qibao visited the headquarters of the official newspaper of the CCP Central Committee, The People’s Daily, and remarked that media organizations should start to transform their writing and reporting [...]
PAKISTAN: Lessons on Courage
Author Maya Angelou stated, “One isn’t necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential.” If this is true, Malala Yousafzai was born with an unlimited amount of potential for courage. Quite frankly she has shown more courage in her first 15 years of life than most adults ever have. While other 12 year [...]
ASIA INSIGHT VIDEO NO. FOUR: STEPHANIE GARCIA AND HER VIEW ON AMERICAN JOURNALISM AND SINGAPORE
Professor Tom Plate meets with South-South News
Professor Tom Plate Goes Live With South-South News to discuss his book on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon. Professor Plate reveals why he decided to write a book on Ban Ki-Moon -- and how the Western media stereotypes the Korean diplomat.
Staff Writer Lauren Chen Reflects on the Death of a Journalist