AMBER VERNETTI WRITES – The Big Bang Theory, dubbed Australia’s favorite comedy by The Sydney Morning Herald, has been approved for three more seasons after a deal was signed between Warner Bros and Chuck Lorre, the show’s creator. This is especially good news for Australian broadcaster Nine Network, which has used the…
Month: April 2014
MYANMAR: SQUAR – The Next Facebook?
ALEXANDRE GUIRAUD-COINTREAU WRITES – While the once-repressive Myanmar transitions to democratic rule with new freedoms being given, the country is discovering equally new ways to communicate and exchange ideas. One is a new website, also available as a smartphone application, called Squar. The website TechInAsia describes Squar as the first social media site…
JAPAN: The Yakuza Does Philanthropy?
LEXIE TUCKER WRITES – Organizations looking to publicize usually turn to the Internet. But what if you’re the yakuza? Often considered Japan’s version of the Italian mob, the yakuza feels so misunderstood it has turned to the Net to help tell a more nuanced story. The Yamaguchi-gumi, a branch of the…
PAKISTAN: Taliban’s PR Blitz Divides and Conquers
AUSTIN SZABO WRITES – The Pakistani wing of the Taliban wants to do the seemingly impossible: Win public sympathy through improved PR. Surprisingly, it’s working. Since the election of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif last year, the Taliban has retooled its communications ops to project the image of an embattled and…
MALAYSIA: Can’t Catch a Break
MARLENA NIP WRITES – From missing airlines to kidnapped tourists, Malaysia struggles to stay out of the bad spotlight. Media outlets from all around the world are capturing the most recent kidnapping that occurred on an island off the eastern coast of Sabah. It was reported that last week an…
POVERTY PROJECT: Media Coverage Aids Severe Pakistani Drought Relief
EMILY GOLDSBOROUGH WRITES – A drought that reportedly killed 238 people in Tharparkar District finally received attention from the Pakistani government, but only after extensive media coverage. Tharparkar, located in the rural south of Pakistan, experiences drought every few years, but this year’s drought has led to malnutrition, disease, and…
MONDAY AT LMU LOS ANGELES: THE DRAMA – HIGH AND LOW – OVER DRONES
To use drones against enemies … or not to drone on? You are invited to an unprecedented review of this immense geopolitical, domestic political and ethic controversy over drone warfare on the LMU campus near Marina Del Rey, California, starting Sunday night. The issue is both new — and as…