Month: February 2013
HOLLYWOOD: Oscars for ‘Intellectual Honesty’?
ARGO won for Best Picture, of course, but in my view it merited an additional Oscar. And so did the far more controversial ZERO DARK THIRTY. Consider that Hollywood hands out awards for everything from “Sound Mixing” to “Best Picture.” But over the decades no Oscar category existed to honor…
SAUDI ARABIA: When Social Media Triggers Intolerance — Is it Thinking Outside the Box … Or Just Thinking Out Loud?
We’re living in a time in which social media plays a crucial role in our lives, whether digitizing human interactions, making us more/less connected, or even mobilizing revolutions. Whatever it is, we cannot deny the fact that we’re being grasping a double-edged sword. As with any other type of technology,…
SINGAPORE: Oral Sex Trial Blows Over!
What the region’s overheated news media has termed “the most high profile graft trial in decades” is finally over… maybe. Last week, Ng Boon Gay, former Central Narcotics Bureau Director, was acquitted of all four charges of corruption. He was accused of obtaining oral sex from Cecilia Sue, sales manager…
VIETNAM: The Overseas Slander Musical
Who knew that Do-Re-Mi could spell Do-Re-Banned? Two Vietnamese singers in the US have been banned from performing in Vietnam, accused of opposing the mother country with slanderous lyrics. Thanh Tuyen and Tuan Vu, along with a handful of others, were charged with slander for their performances on the latest…
THAILAND: Saturday Night Live Faces A Tough Crowd
American television has managed to extend its normal offensive material from domestic viewers to Thailand’s very own Ministry of Culture. In a recent Saturday Night Live sketch poking fun at the learn-the-language product Rosetta Stone, sordid gentlemen were depicted as trying to learn Thai in order to solicit prostitutes. Thai…
New Zealand: Government Tries to Blow Smoke from Tobacco Dangers
Known for its green and environmentally friendly efforts, the New Zealand government is at it again, trying to enact policies that are not only “good” for the environment, but also good for the people. First Target: Tobacco companies. Influenced by the Australian government’s recent introduction of “plain cigarette packaging,” the…
JAPAN: Is This the Best PM Abe Can Do?
In the wake of North Korea’s nuclear test, national security issues have become an even greater priority for Japan’s Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, who is in the early stages of his second run as Prime Minister. However, his responses to the DPRK are already under fire, especially from liberal circles,…
INDONESIA: Fair to Call Them the ‘Dirty Dozen’?
Indonesia’s media will be busy this year covering the approaching 2014 presidential elections, as well as several local elections that will take place before then. However, the media’s role in these elections is now under scrutiny, both from Indonesian citizens and free press supporters worldwide. With the removal of the…
PHILIPPINES: Media-Phobic Commission on Elections—Feigned Fairness?
The public should be cautious of the Commission on Election’s (Comelec) ability to meet its expectations to conduct clean polls in the May 2013 Elections. So far, the Comelec’s integrity has been in question. According to Comelec Resolution 9615, the poll body has imposed aggregate and not per station airtime…
BANGLADESH: Persistent Outrage Over Crusading Blogger’s Death
Bangladesh news coverage this month has been dominated by demonstrations in Dakha demanding stiffer sentences for war criminals from the country’s 1971 Liberation War. Now, hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis have been gathering as they also seek justice for the killing of Ahmed Rajib Haider, a blogger who helped organize…
Pakistan: No room for argument in “The News”
Recently the Pakistan Army condemned what they called the “inhuman and brutal killing” of a soldier by Indian troops near the “Line of Control” in the Kashmir border. According to the Pakistani military, the soldier inadvertently crossed the LoC, and was killed after being questioned by Indian soldiers. As unfortunate…
CHINA: Who’s Hertz, Who’s Avis?
Despite recent media reports that China had surpassed the US when it comes to trade, the recent reports from the Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced that this is not, in fact, the case. The two largest economies in the world, China and the United States have always been neck and…
TAIWAN: Activism and Organizing Through Social Media
Two issues ago, Asia Media covered the media monopoly in Taiwan. To combat this monopolization, many college students, activists, and opposition politicians are taking action to create an anti-media monopolization campaign through the usage of social media. This on-going protest campaign started in July of last year. With the acquisition…
MALAYSIA: Government Tell Aussie to Butt Out
Australia has every right to question Malaysia’s actions. Nick Xenophon, an independent senator from Australia, was recently deported from Malaysia after traveling to Kuala Lumpur on an unofficial parliamentary “fact-finding” journey to analyze the ‘free and fair elections’ in Malaysia. Malaysia says otherwise. According to the Malaysian government, Xenophon was…
INDIA: Cybercrime Response is Crucial to Cameron’s Agenda
British Prime Minister David Cameron’s recent three-day visit to Mumbai and New Delhi- the first visit from an English premier in 20 years — is ripping across Asian subcontinent. Accompanied by the largest entourage of British business officials ever to travel overseas with a prime minister, Cameron had a myriad…