Stories about Weblog from August, 2010
Venezuela: Franklin Brito Dies After Several Hunger Strikes
Franklin Brito, a farmer who had been on a hunger strike since July 2009, died from a respiratory arrest in a military hospital on Monday night. Brito had lived through several hunger strikes protesting the confiscation of his land. Venezuelans reacted to the announcement of his death through Twitter and blogs.
Egypt: Utilizing Technology to Demand Accountability on Torture, Police Brutality
Bloggers and activists in Egypt are using freely available online tools to expose torture and police brutality and to hold the government accountable for these human rights abuses.
U.S. Virgin Islands: The Effects of Hurricane Earl
Hurricane Earl made its way across the U.S. Virgin Islands yesterday as bloggers continued to share their thoughts and experiences. Jamaican diaspora blogger Labrish, who “[has] been fortunate to travel to these islands several times”, was concerned about her acquaintances there: My thoughts go out to everyone living on the...
China: Hidden village of Dafen produces 60% of world's oil paintings
A small artist colony of 8000 artists outside of Shenzhen, China is producing 60% of the world's oil paintings.
Malaysia: Racist Attack on Eve of Independence Day
On the eve of Malaysia's Independence Day, a story was reported on Facebook about an alleged racist attack by several teenagers. Here are some online reactions and reflections on racism in modern Malaysia
Armenia-Azerbaijan: More dialogue through film
With national television in Armenia and Azerbaijan controlled by the authorities or government-linked individuals, there is little opportunity for independent reporting. Now more objective and human interest stories can be found on the Internet.
Nicaragua: The Result of the 2.0 Meeting of Blogs and New Media
The 2.0 Meeting of Blogs and New Media took place on August 12 and 13 in Managua, Nicaragua. Here we summarize the even't results through images, podcasts, videos and blogs.
Caribbean: “Earl” Watch
It's that time again: Hurricane season. Regional bloggers, having been affected by brutal storms in the past, are keeping a watchful eye on Hurricane Earl, which has now been classified as a Category 3 storm. Within the next 36 to 48 hours, it is expected to affect the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, among other islands.
Western Europe: A journey through tech for transparency projects
Sylwia Presley takes us on a tour of technology for transparency projects in Western Europe.
Ghana: Former President Connects With People On Facebook
It has been almost a year and half since John Kufuor respectfully handed over power to Ghanaian President Atta Mills. Despite leaving office, Kufuor still sees the need to communicate with the public. Thanks to social networking, Kufuor communicates to Ghanaian citizens using his Facebook account, which has 15,066 followers (at the time of writing this post).
Australia Still Waiting for a New Government
A week after its election, Australia is waiting for a new government. Neither side won a majority of the 150 House of Representative seats. Bloggers have been busy speculating not only on possible outcomes but also the reasons for the hung parliament.
Japan: Web Startups Present at WISH 2010
The second edition of the web industry event WISH was held on August 28th, and hundreds gathered to hear a panel discussion by industry leaders and 14 presentations by startup services.
Russia: Online Cooperation as an Alternative for Government?
Gregory Asmolov analyzes causes of the highly successful cooperation within the Russian online community during the recent wildfires crisis and examines whether online collaboration can provide a sustainable alternative for the government in the future.
West Africa: Drug Traffickers and Politico-Military Dictators
The UN assistant representative in Africa against drug trafficking Cyriaque Sobtafo recently stated that west Africa is now the hub for cocaine trafficking. Many countries are affected and the sudden death of the son of Dadis Camara generated many speculations about the possible involvement of drug dealers in the event.
Costa Rica: University Students Protest Budget Agreements
Some University of Costa Rica students took hold of the social sciences building in protest of the budgetary agreement that was reached between the government and university officials where a 7% budget increase was agreed upon after negotiating the original 4% the government proposed.
Russia: Adventures of Israeli Blogger in Russian Hospital
Sometimes it takes a foreigner blogging about her experiences in a hospital to pinpoint the "shocking truth" about your country.
Angola: “Alambamento” and Marriage Practices
In Angola, there is quite strong cultural tradition of the asking of the hand of bride in marriage, called alambamento. Considered by some more important that the civil or christian marriage, the alambamento consists of a series of rituals, like the delivery of a letter, material goods and money.
Colombia: Cat Launching Video by Radio DJ Causes Outrage
A video uploaded by DJ Yohan Melguizo on popular social network Facebook two months ago is causing outrage among animal lovers in Medellin, Colombia.
South Asia: Bloggers On The ‘Ground Zero Mosque’
The recent debate on the planned Islamic Center/Mosque near the site of the September 11, 2001 attacks in New York, USA has been reverberated in many blogospheres around the world. In this post we will look at snippets of some interesting conversations on this issue by a number of South Asian bloggers.
Morocco: The Sublime Sufi Revival
The rhythms of a Sufi revival are passionately reverberating through the corridors of Morocco, and they are not going unheard, especially by the nation’s youth.
Egypt: Ramadan Television and the Muslim Brotherhood
This year in Ramadan the Egyptian TV decided to produce a series about the opposition party Al-Ikhwan (The Muslim Brotherhood). The TV series, which is called El Gamaa, tries to shed light on the history of group and it's founder Hassan El Banna, bringing criticism from many bloggers that it reflects nothing but the regime's point of view.
