· January, 2011

Stories about Digital Activism from January, 2011

USA: “We Want Our Al Jazeera!”

  31 January 2011

In the wake of the Tunisian and Egyptian popular uprisings, Al Jazeera has received praise around the globe, yet remains unavailable through cable providers in the United States. Jillian C. York looks at reactions from Americans on Twitter and blogs, and finds that they want their Al Jazeera!

Russia: Blogger Released After 14 Months of Penal Colony

RuNet Echo  31 January 2011

Irek Murtazin [RUS], blogger and former spokesperson of the Tatarstan's president, has been released today after spending more than 14 months in penal colony, “Novaya Gazeta” reported [RUS]. After published a gossip about the death of Mintimir Shaimiev, president of Tatarstan Republic, Murtazin had been accused of defamation and sentenced to 2 years...

Sudan: “Facebook Revolution” with the help of Twitter as a side kick

  31 January 2011

Today we are witnessing a new trend in Sudan. Young Sudanese are growing up digital and are well aware of how the world is changing around them. Young people in Sudan are using social media tools to voice their opinions and challenge the regime. In this post, we are looking at how social media tools were used to help organise, document and report January 30 demonstrations.

Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago: Looking at Egypt

  31 January 2011

Cuban bloggers speculate that the Egypt protests may set an example for Cubans, issue advice to the Egyptian people and blog about similarities and differences between the two countries, while from Trinidad and Tobago, Globewriter calls social networking “the new human rights weapon”.

Egypt: Sixth Day of Uprising Tweeted

  30 January 2011

The Egyptian protesters have been defying the night curfew on Sunday, as they continued demonstrating against the 30 year-old rule of Muhammed Hosni Mubarak. In a dramatic day that saw the closure by the Egyptian government of the Al Jazeera TV network's bureau in Cairo, the rapidly changing situation on the ground was largely relayed by social media networks on the Internet, especially on Twitter.

Sudan: People's Revolution in the Making?

  30 January 2011

Following mass protests in Tunisia and Egypt, a group Sudanese activists have chosen January 30, 2011 to be the beginning of peaceful demonstrations to bring down Omar al-Bashir and his government. Here is a roundup of latest tweets using the hashtag #SudanJan30.

Maldives: In Solidarity with Egypt

  30 January 2011

The ongoing protests in Egypt have ‘electrified’ netziens in the Maldives. These uprisings have a special significance to the Maldivians as it brings back flashbacks of pro-democracy protests held only a few years ago to bring democracy to the Indian Ocean island nation.

Egypt: The World is Watching

  30 January 2011

As Egyptian demonstrators take to the streets for the sixth day in a row, netizens continue to pull all the stops to keep the world informed of what is happening on the ground. Here's a snapshot of reactions from Twitter this morning, compiled by Jordanian Nadine Toukan.

Maldives to Egypt: Can a Revolution be Censored?

  30 January 2011

When the Egyptian government decided to go for a total Internet shutdown of the country to curb the growing anti-government protests, people in the Maldives were reminded of 13 August, 2004, when the government of Maldives blocked Internet in the country following a massive pro-democracy demonstration.

Could Nicaragua experience “the Egypt and Tunisia phenomenon”?

  29 January 2011

In an interview with El Nuevo Diario [es], Global Voices author Rodrigo Peñalba was asked [es] if the phenomenon seen in Egypt and Tunisia is “far from the national reality” and if netizens would respond in the same way. He concludes that the newspaper, instead of asking “could this happen...

Brazil: Ministry of Culture abandons Creative Commons

  29 January 2011

Brazilian Minister of Culture's decision to remove a Creative Commons license from its website provoked all sorts of reactions on social networks and among bloggers. It is the first instance of undoing of the previous government inclusive public policies regarding Internet, digital culture and authorial rights.

Ukraine: Support “The Pickle Project”!

  29 January 2011

Linda Norris and Sarah Crow are fundraising on Kickstarter in order to be able to return to Ukraine and continue work on The Pickle Project, which “explores contemporary and traditional Ukrainian foodways, introducing fascinating people, practices and places, through photographic documentation, audio interviews and video.”

Hungary: Filtering Foreign Media Content?

  29 January 2011

Hungarian Spectrum reports that the official Hungarian news agency seems to be supplying other media outlets with “wrong translations” of foreign media content, perhaps trying “to conceal some of the bad news–bad that is from the point of view of the government–from the Hungarian public.” Galamus Csoport, however, offers “accurate...