Global Voices Online

ESWN translates an articles written by Chang Shi-kuo on the transition of Chinese media as represented by a star map.

Chinese artist Ai Wei Wei's blog is now turning into a bilingual photo blog, run by a team. The blog's propaganda statement is here.

Feng Xiao-kang's latest movie “the Banquet” is aiming at the international market, with many international stars, such as Zhang Ziyi. However, local responses of the movie have been rather negative. Lu Na in mindmeters comments that Feng has lost his style in the process of internationalization. Instead of taking advantage of his distinctive grassroots style, he believes that capital can buy his way to Hollywood.

Absurd fool at interlocals.net reports about the politics of consumption during the national day holiday; Joel Martinsen in DANWEI translates a blog post on “National day in the age of angry youth”.

Lyn Jeffery compares English and Chinese web design in Virtual China.

At his blog, Alain Mabanckou, a Congolese writer living in California, gives a rather comic account of a conversation he had with his landlady after she sees a story on television about “the poor Congolese” (or maybe they were Africans from some other country whose “president has a long name”) who have “illness, famine, and many wives, and who are always fighting each other.” She tells Mabanckou that their president (whoever he is) is really a villan and that “something really should be done…the Americans should go and clean up things over there.”

Confronting old Greek and Turkish historical tensions crosses the Atlantic as Amerikan Turk illustrates.

A Kenyan blogger attends the Nairobi International Trade Fair, “Things have changed. First of all this show is not exclusively about agriculture. Today I learnt how to get online using the Safaricom service GPRS service called The Edge without any wires using Bluetooth. I learnt about the Nairobi Stock Exchange and signed up with a couple of share traders. I sat in and messed about in the Volvo SUV XC-90. I learnt about Kenya’s efforts in Eco Tourism, drank some camel milk, checked the electoral roll to see if my registration last month is reflected, found out about holiday destinations in Mozambique etc. etc. etc.” He posts some photos from the trade fair.

What has rice got to do with neo-colonialism in Africa? Mining Exploration has the answer:
“Africa is home to 8% of the world’s oil reserves, which has prompted Beijing to spend billions of dollars to secure drilling rights in Nigeria, Sudan and Angola and to negotiate exploration contracts with Chad, Gabon, Mauritania, Kenya, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia and the Republic of the Congo. The continent now accounts for 25% of China’s oil imports.
In addition, the Chinese are also key investors in the copper industry in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. And they are buying timber in Mozambique, Liberia, Gabon, Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea.”