NICOLE SABA WRITES- Lebanon has once again proven its sound relationship with media censorship. “The Attack”, an award-winning movie directed by Lebanese director, Ziad Doueiri, was banned from airing in Lebanese cinemas. The Interior Minister of Lebanon, Marwan Charbel, claims that the reason for rejecting the movie is because it was partly filmed in [...]
MYANMAR: Blogging For Bloodshed
GABRIELLA CASTRO WRITES – The use of media propaganda to rally support is not a new phenomenon. However, using violent content to incite military backing is somewhat of a contemporary trend. Myanmar is a country that is still ripe with social conflict and unrest within its borders. Sites are popping up all over the [...]
VIETNAM: Idol Culture Threatened by K-Pop Sensations
YVONNE EPPS WRITES – The Vietnamese Idol culture might have some competition from some neighbors whose intentions might be more hostile than sensational. Last month, Vietnam Net Bridge covered a story on “Idol culture” in Vietnam where it was found that fan clubs obsessively love their respective idols like Uyen Linh, My Tam and [...]
DUBAI: In Praise of the Newspaper, in This Digital Age
TOM PLATE WROTE the following for a leading newspaper in United Arab Emirates — the Khaleej Times. It is one of the most influential daily newspapers of the Gulf States and Arabia. The following essay appeared in a special edition of that newspaper celebrating its 35th anniversary. “THIS IS AN age when digital media of [...]
JAPAN: Marketing Magic of Murakami
JEREMIAH FAJARDO WRITES – Aided by a veil of secrecy, Haruki Murakami’s latest novel has infused new life into Japan’s declining publishing industry. Born in 1949, Murakami has been a key figure in the nation’s modern literary sphere, having won numerous awards in Japan as well as abroad. According to The Mainichi Daily, one of [...]
BANGLADESH: Full Court Press Is Next?
KIARA BRAMASCO WRITES – A top editor at Bangladesh’s Amar Desh newspaper has been arrested and at least one human rights group says he’s being tortured in police custody. The international Committee to Protect Journalists, meanwhile, has called on the government to stop its official harassment of the Dhaka daily. How’d we get it this [...]
PAKISTAN: Social Media Becomes Cricket
JESSICA GADOMSKI WRITES – Candidates running in next month’s election are obviously vying for votes. But some candidates, like Imran Khan, are bringing the competition into the 21st century. Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) political party recognized early on that social media could influence the election. PTI began reaching out to voters through Facebook, Twitter [...]
KUWAIT: A Turn for the Worst?
NICOLE SABA WRITES – A new media law has been drafted in Kuwait, severely restricting both freedom of the press and freedom of speech. This law will let the government regulate both traditional and social media, including, but not limited to: blogs, Facebook, Twitter, and any other online forums. Though the law has not yet [...]
PAKISTAN: Musharraf Admission Drones On
LIZA HERNANDEZ WRITES – During a recent CNN interview, former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf admitted that his government made a secret deal with the United States that allowed drone strikes to occur in Pakistan. In the interview, the former president stated that permission was given to execute drone strikes “…only on a few occasions, when [...]
MYANMAR: Friend or Foe?
ALEXANDRE GUIRAUD-COINTREAU WRITES – In Myanmar, laws are changing, media companies are moving back to the country, and daily private newspapers are being published. But there is still a long way to go before this country can achieve a truly Western style press. Publishers are faced with new issues every day, such as financing. Aung [...]
MALAYSIA: Time to Say Good-bye?
MARLENA NIP WRITES – The Malaysian elections are fast approaching and judging from current public opinion polls, it looks like Malaysian citizens are shoving the national party out the door. This could be a historical election if the opposition party is able to take the reigns on Malaysian politics. The United Malays National Organization (UMNO) [...]
CHINA: Heritage of Destruction
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Many Chinese Buddhists are up in arms over the planned destruction of buildings in a well-known ancient temple in the city of Xi’an. Last month, these Buddhists urged an investigation into the matter and various media sources reported that several buildings in Xingjiao Temple were to be smashed to pieces. Built [...]
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