Month: June 2013
JAPAN: The Dangers of Distasteful Tweeting
JEREMIAH FAJARDO WRITES – Government use of social media to engage with citizens has boomed. Japan is a great example, with many bureaucrats and politicians tweeting about their views or upcoming campaigns. Disappointingly, Yasuhisa Mizuno, a 45-year-old official, managed to tweet his way out of a job. According to the…
PHILIPPINES: Newspaper Publisher Fails to Uphold Press Freedom
LAUREN CHEN WRITES – This February, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) recognized the late Philippine Daily Inquirer publisher Isagani Yambot Sr. and four others as “Press Freedom Heroes.” But try telling that to Inquirer cartoonist Pol Medina Jr., whose recent suspension, censorship and eventual resignation challenges…
CHINA: Tea, Biscuits, Perry Mason and Journalism
Can China and the U.S. ever get along? That was the obvious subtext of an informal discussion recently between key members of a visiting group of senion journalists from Mainland China and staffers from The New ASIA MEDIA, the popular online magazine at LMU. […]
THAILAND: Social Media, the New Censorship Kryptonite?
ELIZABETH NAAI WRITES – China and the U.S. are not alone in the trenches of cyber warfare. The 4th Army Region has taken up mouses and keyboards to uphold lese majeste in an increasingly connected Thailand. Task Force 45 of the Thahan Phran — hunter soldiers — left a deluge…
ART SPOTLIGHT: Kris Soguilon Emphasizes Our Similarities with Pomp, Circumstance and a Dash of Sex
The artist’s take on his work: “A sense of fusion may emerge from a multiracial society even as each individual culture manifests its own uniqueness. Cultures may clash, but the differences also draw together in a particular way to present perspectives peculiar to the mix, as can be enjoyed in London, New York and Singapore. The spectator who steps back to look at the differences may encounter the experience of an elaborate celebration.” […]
SOUTH KOREA: Looking Past the Gossip
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES – Stories about celebrity love lives are often more speculation than fact. But in South Korea, this may be changing thanks to Dispatch, a web site that’s made its name telling the truth. Though just two years old, Dispatch has already gained a reputation for both breaking…
CHINA: Media Helps Spread Environmental Awareness
LEXIE TUCKER WRITER – Even as all eyes were on Singapore and the blanket of Sumatran smoke choking the island, mainland China’s State Council was taking steps to help clear that country’s air. According to local media reports, the council approved several specific measures to fight further air pollution, a…
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE LADY: WHY IS SHE NOT SPEAKING OUT ABOUT THE ROHINGYA?
ELODIE INTROIA WRITES – In view of recent events, journalists and activists have come together to call on Aung San Suu Kyi to raise awareness and be the voice of what the United Nations has called the world’s most persecuted people – The Rohingya.
TAIWAN: Modelling After China’s Great Firewall?
BRIAN CANAVE WRITES – Will Taiwan follow suit in building its own version of China’s unique Internet censorship policy known as the “Great Firewall”? China is infamous for its Internet services blocking international websites. For Taiwan, the country’s Intellectual Property Office says for now it will only target international websites…
PHILIPPINES: Bright Future with Broadened Media Freedom
LAUREN CHEN WRITES – Gone is the fear of being imprisoned for liking an offensive photo on Facebook. The Department of Justice (DOJ) is revising the currently suspended 2012 Cybercrime Law and in the process has dropped the provision penalizing online libel. According to Geronimo Sy, head of the DOJ…
SINGAPORE: New MDA Regulations Have Web Users Up in Arms
STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES -The Singapore government just made it a lot harder for small news outfits to do their jobs. But netizens refuse to go down without a fight. On May 28 the Media Development Agency (MDA) enacted new Internet regulations on news sites. Under the rules, sites that regularly…
VIETNAM: Free Wi-Fi, but a Wired Outcome
YVONNE EPPS WRITES – Today, life and the Internet are synonymous, so free Wi-Fi is to be expected, but what’s the benefit if citizens aren’t the intended users? Residents and tourists in Hue City, Vietnam’s former Royal Capital, are scheduled to receive free Wi-Fi in major public areas such as…
THAILAND: Social Media Enlightens Locals who were Left in the Dark
ELIZABETH NAAI WRITES – On Tuesday, May 21st Thailand’s largest blackout to date engulfed fourteen southern provinces, including major business industries and tourist destinations in Hat Yai, Koh Sumai, and Phuket. After losing power at 6:30 p.m., many residents and businesses did not recover electricity until 9:30 p.m. that night.…
JAPAN: Cosplay Summit Promotes Japan’s Soft Power
JEREMIAH FAJARDO WRITES – When it comes to making friends abroad, sometimes a pink-haired manga fan beats officially-sanctioned cultural exchanges. That’s proving to be the case in Japan with this summer’s 11th annual World Cosplay Summit (WCS) in Nagoya’s Osu district. Since the 1950s, anime and manga have been core…
CHINA: Local Media Demands Justice for Angel of Death
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Nurses. We trust them to take care of the sick and, as their name suggests, nurture their patients back to health. But what happens when they shirk their duties and instead harm the very people they are supposed to be watching over? On May 31, local…