MOVIE REVIEW: FROM AFGHANISTAN … NO WESTERN-STYLE LOVE STORY, FOR SURE – BUT ‘WAJMA’ HAS THE FEEL OF A MINOR CLASSIC
ASIA MEDIA INTERNATIONAL WRITES – If you can’t stand scenes depicting violence against women, stay away from “Wajma: An Afghan Love Story.” Filmed in 2013 on a budget as small as they get, and now released on DVD, this was Afghanistan’s submission to the 86th Oscars for Best Foreign Language…
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Indonesia: THE SLIPPERY BUSINESS OF ‘DIRTY’ PALM OIL
OLIVIA AMEZCUA WRITES– When one thinks of Indonesia, palm oil might not be the first thought that comes to mind. Many folks remain vastly unaware of both the country’s near-existential ties with the product— and the self-destructive dangers the palm oil industry imposes on this sprawling nation’s environment. Palm oil…
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LOOKING BACK AT JOURNALIST JAMAL KHASHOGGI’S BRUTAL END
AN ASIA MEDIA INTERNATIONAL SPECIAL REPORT: BY LMU STUDENTS– Salem AlSabah, Mohammed AlSabah, Saud K AlRashed, Saud F AlRashed, Bader Bahman, Ali AlKhater, and Mohammed AlShehri. Managing Editors’ Note: One of the dominant news stories of this past year concerns the murder of Saudi Arabian journalist and Washington Post columnist…
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BANGLADESH: Rohingya Exodus – What’s Happening in Cox’s Bazar?
AASHNA MALPANI WRITES– Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya, victims of Myanmar’s ethnic cleansing, are packed into refugee camps just 20 miles from the city of Cox’s Bazar, in Bangladesh. Their everyday life is riddled with little access to education and restricted cellular reception. And they are social pariahs. “The average…
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VIETNAM: ‘THE FINE ART OF THE POLITICAL INTERVIEW’ PUBLISHED BY HOUSE OF TRE
ASIA MEDIA INTERNATIONAL WRITES – Tre Publishing House, the noted publisher of books and magazines and one of the top publishers in Vietnam, has issued its Vietnamese translation of ‘The Fine Art of the Political Interview’. Serving a dynamic country of almost 97 million, Tre (https://www.nxbtre.com.vn/en/about-us/general-introduction.htm) has its headquarters in…
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The Tariff Truce: Too Little, Too Late?
MILES KENT WRITES– The G20 Summit, an annual gathering of 20 established and developing economies that took place, has been called an American automaker win by the Trump administration. Following a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Trump tweeted about Chinese plans “to reduce and remove tariffs on American…
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You Might Want to Head to Asia to Learn English
“To have another language is to possess a second soul.” – Charlemagne ANAS ALZAHRANI WRITES — When non-native English speakers decide to learn English in a different country, the first locations that come to mind are the U.S and England, where English is the first language. Command over the English…
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A TRIBUTE TO GEORGE H.W. BUSH, RIP: THE CRUCIAL KOREA CONNECTION
SPENCER H. KIM WRITES – George H.W. Bush, the U.S. president from 1989 to early 1993, recently passed away. To most Koreans, he may seem like a character from the distant past, but he had a great impact on the Korea of today. He worked hand in hand with Roh…
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HONG KONG: CHINA’S THINK TANKS AND THE NEW ‘CONTAINMENT POLICY’ FOR TARIFFS
TOM PLATE WRITES – Fragile ceasefires are not the sharpest knife in diplomacy’s kitchen drawer but are several cuts above abandoning a firefight and allowing it to roar on. The tariff war that President Trump ignited on the hefty kindling of China’s self-styled “socialism with Chinese characteristics” has been put…
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WASHINGTON: A SAD DOG’S LIFE FOR VETS OF AFGHANISTAN, IRAQ AND VIETNAM
ANDREA PLATE WRITES – Has anyone remained dry-eyed after seeing Sully the dog on TV— President George Herbert Walker Bush’s yellow Labrador service dog, looking woebegone beside his best friend’s coffin? After viewing that TV image, could anyone doubt that dog is not just man’s best friends, but a veteran’s…
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SEOUL: SECOND KIM-TRUMP SUMMIT ‘URGENT,’ SAYS TOP ADVISER TO SOUTH KOREA’S PRESIDENT
SEOUL, Nov. 29 (Yonhap) — The United States and North Korea should hold their second summit at an early date to break the impasse in their denuclearization talks, a special adviser to President Moon Jae-in says. Moon Chung-in, who serves as special presidential adviser for unification, foreign and security affairs,…
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INDIA: Postpartum Depression, Women, and the Indian Society in Between
(Certain names in the story have been shortened to protect the person’s identity.) AASHNA MALPANI WRITES– I hear a piercing wail in the background. My source puts the phone on hold for a minute, then returns with apologies: “Sometimes I wish I never had him.” She sounds exasperated, complaining about…
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JAPAN: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s Visit to China – A Foreshadowing of the Future
KAISARA WALTON WRITES — Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s visit to China some six weeks ago certainly set a positive tone internationally. At the same time, though, it marked China’s continual growth on the world stage. That’s good for Japan, and China, perhaps. But shouldn’t the United States be concerned?…
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China: The Masters and Commanders of Internet Censorship
JABBER ALSABAH WRITES — President Xi Jinping unveiled new regulations for China’s internet freedom at the World Internet Conference from November 7 – 9 in Wuzhen. Yet ironically, this international conference focused on promoting the concept of mutual trust and collective international governance based on openness, rather than restriction. Freedom…
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HONG KONG: PASSING ON AN INVITATION FROM A FAMOUS GRADUATE SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
Dear Professor – We are Asia’s premier journalism school offering a masters in journalism programme that is considered by many to be the region’s most selective and cutting-edge while also being affordable. Our faculty is made up of top experts and veteran journalists reporting on China, business and finance in…
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HONG KONG: UNEASY LIES THE HEAD THAT WEARS THE CROWN OF THE SUPERPOWER
PROF TOM PLATE WRITES – It’s not easy being a superpower, and whoever would imagine such might be the case? Sometimes one almost feels an odd twang of sympathy for the leaders of China and the U.S. Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown of the superpower. Could any…
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