24 Jun 11 | Uncategorized
The pressure is mounting on ISPs to come up with a means of making the internet safe for children. At a meeting in Westminster this week, hosted by Claire Perry MP, the pro-blocking camp was out in force. Culture minister Ed Vaizey told the meeting that he didn’t care how it was done, he just wanted it done. He warned the ISPs that Parliament was itching for regulation and that they had to get ahead of the curve. He was quick to add that it’s not a free speech issue — no one was proposing that adults would be stopped from accessing content, it was just a matter of giving parents the tools they need. (more…)
13 Jun 11 | News and features
There was a fascinating story in yesterday’s New York Times on the development of “shadow” internet and mobile phone systems that would allow dissidents to operate when their governments censor or cut off communication lines. (more…)
03 Jun 11 | Egypt, Middle East and North Africa
Take the time to watch the outrageous Vodafone ad that has sparked public outrage in Egypt this week. Vodafone, the company that complied with the Mubarak regimes demands to shutdown communications networks is taking credit for what happened in Tahrir Square.
If I were a Vodafone customer, I promise you I would’ve switched networks after watching their latest commercial. The film created by advertising agency JWT, takes credit for the Egyptian revolution.
You read that right. Vodafone and JWT are telling us, in a 3:59 spot, that “we’re not trying to take credit for the revolution but really, we totally inspired it with our crappy ad from last year. You’re welcome, Egypt”.
Because the tag line was something along the lines of “Our power isn’t that we’re number one — our power is in each one of us”. Whatever that means.
Apparently this tag line inspired people to take the streets. I mean, never mind the years of activism, the protests, the decades of cumulated grievances, the terrible economic situation, the trampled political freedoms, the police brutality, the torture, etc. Nah.
We just watched a Vodafone Ad, and thought: “Hey! We’re powerful! Let’s topple the president!”
Vodafone Egypt JWT Ad Taking Credit For #Jan25… by andreasudo
Watch it and then check out the hilarious IHateVodafoneEgypt.com. The PR backlash forced Vodafone Egypt to put out a public statement about the video, claiming it was “produced by JWT company for its internal use and not for public display”.
Now what about this about a lawsuit against them for disconnecting their phone and internet services?
02 Jun 11 | Index Index, minipost
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reports Gwinnett County schools in Georgia employ a filter, Blue Coat, that blocks access to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender site and classifies them as sexually explicit or pornographic. The ACLU drafted a demand letter on 23 May, asking the county to remove the filters from the schools and respond to its inquiry by 30 May, but has not yet received a response. Nowmee Shehab, a recent graduate and former president of the LGBT club at one of the schools told ACLU she was unable to access LGBT sites to plan activities. She stated, “Students need to be able to find information about their rights and about suicide and bullying prevention, and now they’re not able to get to information that’s really important for them.”s
