CATEGORY: Magazine Editions

Private lives

Private lives

by | 16 Jun 20

ust how much of our privacy might we give away – accidentally, on purpose or through force – in the battle against Covid-19? This is the question we pose in the Index on Censorship summer 2020 magazine. Tech journalist Geoff White looks at how drones are hovering overhead around the world, from China to the UK, to make sure we are abiding by quarantine and physical distancing. Just how up close and personal can they get? Less technical but just as sinister, Issa Sikiti da Silva reports from Uganda on government spies that are doing the same job as the drones, only they seem to be targeting political opposition. Meanwhile, people around the world are being encouraged to download contact tracing apps. That might be ok when the app has safeguarded privacy, but more often than not what is happening to data is not being spelt out, something Indian journalists are worried about in terms of their safety and that of their contacts, as Indian journalist Somak Ghoshal writes. And in the case of Colombia, Stephen Woodman highlights that the apps are easy for hackers to access. But when we’re in the home things don’t seem much better, as Adam Aiken argues in his article looking at the privacy issues that blight Zoom.

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Complicity

Complicity

by | 24 Mar 20

What role do we play in our own free speech issues? This is the question we pose in the Index on Censorship spring 2020 magazine. From the journalists who self-censor and the academics who don’t stand up to their arrested colleagues to the average person who shares lots of data with a third party, we are all playing a role in giving away some of our basic rights, information and privacy. Whether we don’t realise we are doing it, we don’t have much other choice or we simply think the trade is worth making, we can be complicit in letting our own rights erode. The ways we are complicit are multiple. Noelle Mateer offers a personal account about living in Beijing under a landlord who embraced the growing trend for video cameras at home. Nathalie Rothschild introduces us to the Swedes who are willingly having microchips inserted under their skin. Is this a great way to keep your own data very, very close to you or a gateway to further data exploitation? Helen Lewis talks about how our fears to enter certain heated discussions might be making vulnerable groups more vulnerable. And Mark Frary tests out the apps to see just how much we are giving away. Elsewhere Stephen Woodman talks to Colombian journalists living in fear of drug cartels. We also publish extracts from a Brazilian documentary that was censored by Jair Bolsonaro, plus a short written exclusively for the magazine by Najwa Bin Shatwan.

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The Big Noise

The Big Noise

by | 10 Dec 19

We are living in the age of the macho leaders. All around the world, these so called “strong men” have stormed the polls and are coming to power. They are being voted in democratically yes, but what they stand for is disastrous for democracy. Not only do they have little time for free speech, their entire image is often constructed around a very delicate type of masculinity that does not accept criticism or dissent. This is what we discuss in the winter 2019 issue of Index on Censorship magazine. In this issue Rappler news editor Miriam Grace Go writes about how the president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, tries to position himself as the man by being as foul-mouthed as possible. If you’re a critical journalist – and especially a woman journalist – you can expect vitriol from him. Indian journalist Somak Goshal reports on how Narenda Modi presents an image of being both the guy next door, as well as a tough guy – and he’s got a large following to ensure his message gets across, come what may. And Stefano Pozzebon talks to journalists in Brazil who are right in the firing line of Jair Bolsonaro’s vicious attacks on the media. Meanwhile Mark Frary talks about the tools that autocrats are using to crush dissent and Caroline Lees looks at the smears that are becoming commonplace as a tactic to silence journalists. We also publish a poem from Hong Kong writer Tammy Lai-ming Ho, which addresses the current protests engulfing the city, plus two short stories written exclusively for the magazine by Kaya Genç and Jonathan Tel. Also Rob Sears creates a handbook for the modern dictator.

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Front covers of past issues and contents