Group items tagged

"Above all, it is important to see that, in well-functioning democracies, public forums of various stripes -- from streets and parks to daily newspapers -- expose people to a variety of (sometimes unexpected) ideas and topics. Unanticipated, chance encounters -- with people and ideas -- are fundamental to democracy. "

This article talks about why "personalized news" may be a threat to a well-functioning democracy. It says that we need the unexpected view point.

"YouTube's own guidelines already block videos featuring sex, violence, bestiality and child pornography. But under the "refused classification" rules, videos featuring subjects as diverse as euthanasia, drug use and graffiti, would also be banned. Google said it would not voluntarily censor videos on these subjects because exposing the topics to public debate was vital for democracy."

I'm surprised that a communications minister in Australia would request that Google voluntarility censor videos about drug use and euthanasia. Where would this type of censorship stop? Glad Google politely said "no" citing the importance of access to information for democracy.

""We'll work to produce a technology that is good for humanity, which will be good for democracy, which will be good for science.""

A group called the World Wide Web Foundation started to make sure the Internet is meeting society's needs.

Is the Internet really a blessing for democracy? This is actually one of the readings assigned to us for EPS 415

Worldwide Governance Indicators. This is the Web site Gabriela suggested in class about democracy.

"the 20th anniversary of the army's 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators"

Keeping the Internet Open Innovative Free

Tracy found this link and shared it with us via the Google group. It's pretty neat!

"Under the plan, called the Bandwidth Initiative, institutions in Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda joined together to buy broadband Internet access, offered by satellite, at discounted rates."

This article touches on some of the problems that African countries are having getting needed high-speed Internet. Companies have a monopoly and grossly overcharge, resulting in prices that are many times that of U.S. or European high speed Internet. This sort of parallels the lack of democracy and highlights problems with corruption that cause many nations in Africa to get stuck behind in matters of development and innovation.

Looking at the negatives of social media: A few states say that school conduct codes must explicitly prohibit off-campus cyberbullying; others imply it; still others explicitly exclude it. Some states say that local districts should develop cyberbullying prevention programs but the states did not address the question of discipline. Judges are flummoxed, too, as they wrestle with new questions about protections on student speech and school searches. Can a student be suspended for posting a video on YouTube that cruelly demeans another student? Can a principal search a cellphone, much like a locker or a backpack?

This article is about how Guatemalans used Twitter to share news about corruption within the government. A revolution started with Twitter...sort of

Melanie/ Mary (filtering) "China has delayed a plan requiring all new computers sold in the country to be equipped with internet filtering software. The Green Dam software has become a major topic of discussion in the blogosphere."

The Green Dam ? a software proposed in June 2009 to be installed on all Chinese computers - plan has stalled. people can get through it. Intention was to block pornographic content and allow "comprehensive net surveillance"

Melanie- Mary Internet is a basic human right...

"workers quickly mopped up the blood, strapped him back in his seat and shut the door. Then, with the cameras rolling, the cabin door swung open again, revealing an unblemished moment of triumph for all the world to see. The content of Mr. Xia's speech, transcribed and posted online by someone who attended the May 15 lecture at Tianjin Foreign Studies University, has become something of a sensation in recent days, providing the Chinese a rare insight into how their news is stage-managed for mass consumption. "

An example of how Chinese news is "managed" for mass consumption.

"Google plans to stop automatically sending users in mainland China to its uncensored Hong Kong site, in an effort to appease Beijing as it seeks to renew its license to operate in China. "

Twitter and YouTube spread information about riots and political unrest. Can these media "get around" censorship?

paper from the Brookings Insitution: " Can new media actually boost democratic participation and change politics in a lasting way? Or is such optimism as inflated as internet stocks during the dot com mania at the beginning of this millennium?"

great page that's a course syllabus for a class at The Fletcher School. Many links to articles and videos. Could also be somewhat of a model for our project...

Reporters without Borders for press Freedom.

Good paper