MICHELLE VARINATA WRITES – Given the fact that Indonesia is one of South Eastern Asia’s largest democracies, a core value in a democratic society is the freedom of speech. While social media provides a platform for people to vent their feelings and share their thoughts, it should not be treated…
MARY GRACE COSTA WRITES– Is killing journalists an act of war? Associated Press president Gary Pruitt believes it is. Last week at the Hong Kong Foreign Correspondents Club, Pruitt suggested changes to international laws that would make killing journalists or taking them hostage a war crime, punishable under the 1948…
MIRANDA PAK WRITES – Everything must come to an end, including Hong Kong’s oldest TV station, Asia Television (ATV). ATV will have to stop broadcasting starting April 1st, 2016. Hong Kong’s Executive Council said they won’t renew ATV’s free-to-air license when it expires on November 30th of this year. ATV strove to…
VERONICA BANEZ WRITES – Lightbox, Neon, Netflix, Quickflix, Sky TV. These are only a few of the many streaming movie and television services that are provided in New Zealand. James Croot and Blayne Slabbert, writers for the website Stuff.com, really put into perspective the wide range of differences between all…
ADRIAN NARAYAN WRITES—A government initiative to make a difference in the third largest Asian economy hasn’t gotten off to a very productive start. Announced back in September 2014, Make In India is an undertaking to invite international companies to manufacture their products in India. Since it’s launch, Make in India has…
RYAN LIPPERT WRITES- In the midst of heightened tensions due to annual military drills between the U.S. and South Korea, the North Korean government has announced that they will not hesitate to respond to certain future transgressions by the South with overwhelming force. What are these transgressions, you ask? Dropping…
ALEXIS CRUZ WRITES- The last month has brought a flood of news about the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. It’s been a controversial topic ever since FIFA awarded the tournament to Qatar, in part because of the country’s kafala system that critics say lets employers abuse migrant workers. When FIFA announced…
MIRANDA PAK WRITES – Twitter, which has been blocked in China since 2009, opened an office in Hong Kong on March 10. Tweeting was blocked in China because officials were worried that citizens would use social media for their own benefit and plan large anti-government protests. Despite what many people think,…
HAIG TER-GHEVONDIAN WRITES – The death of a single child is a tragedy; the death of over 100 can hardly be put into words. Last December, Taliban suicide bombers attacked the Peshawar Army School of Pakistan slaughtering students, faculty and staff. As most of the nation wept for the those who lost their…
TRISTAN WILLENBURG WRITES– Western ideas clash yet again with Middle Eastern realities. Saudi Arabia will no longer issue or renew the visas of Swedish nationals and has withdrawn its ambassador from Stockholm in response to the comments of a senior Swedish official. An arms deal between the two countries has also fallen apart over the…
AMBER VERNETTI WRITES- The Festival of Media Asia Pacific (FOMAC), an event celebrating the accomplishments and new goals for the region’s media, took place this week from March 22-24 at the Capella Singapore, Sentosa. The festival gathered over 700 leaders of the region’s media from 22 countries and was a busy three…
Abu Dhabi Media Company (ADMC) has re-launched two of its most popular TV channels, Al Emarat and Abu Dhabi. ADMC is self-described as a “multi-platform media and entertainment organization operating across the broadcast, publishing, and digital media sectors.” Reported by ADMC-owned newspaper The National, ADMC has “adopted the latest media and digital…
KELCEY LORENZO WRITES – After almost a year away and the departure of two members, boy group sensation EXO is officially back on the K-Pop scene. The now ten-membered group began releasing teasers for their new album “Exodus” on March 18th through the YouTube page of their entertainment company, SM…
MICHELLE VARINATA WRITES – Poverty and wealth; primitive and modern; religious and secular. Indonesia is Asia’s most enigmatic (and somewhat bi-polar) nation filled with socio-economic contradictions. Despite the disparity in wealth, the country has one thing that bonds everyone from all walks of life: technology. Recently, Indonesia has built a…
JOHN PO WRITES – Singapore’s founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew passed away peacefully on March 23. As Singapore observed her final day of mourning, the legacy that he leaves behind is one that can be seen in the modern city that is home to 7 million. Mr. Lee has…
Lee Kuan Yew, father of modern Singapore, passed away on March 23, 2015 at the age of 91. Asia Media International Editor-in-Chief Thomas Plate spoke with multiple news outlets regarding the man who helped Singapore grow from a struggling third-world country to a thriving first-world economy. Interviews featuring Tom Plate Bloomberg…
