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Protest Swells in Tunisia
The Twittersphere is clamoring for more coverage of unrest in Tunisia, and the side-effect is their making heavy strides towards creating their own coverage. The protests were sparked by anger over unemployment and by one man's reaction to it: Mohammed Bouazizi, a young university graduate, set himself on fire after police confiscated the fruits and vegetables he was selling illegally in an effort to earn a living.
Unrest has only continued to swell since Saturday.
From Flickr user kevinv033
What’s Next for Digital Activism in 2011?
As 2010 winds down, critics and bloggers are clamoring to publish year-end reviews and reflections and to offer predictions about what will come in 2011. We’ve rounded up some of the top predictions for the coming year and how they could impact the realm of digital activism. What does 2011 hold in store for users' privacy, web censorship, mobile phone use, and cybersecurity?
What Was Most Popular on Movements.org in 2010?
Which blog posts, case studies or how to guides have you read the most in since our soft launch began this past summer? Here are the top ten most popular posts in our short history!
Belarusians Out On the Street After Rigged Elections, from Twitter user @ljoksa
Can a YouTube Clip Get Under a Dictator’s Skin?
With just under two weeks until citizens vote on whether the South will split off from the North and form its own nation, tensions are rising in Sudan. Adding to this is a video of state security forces publicly beating a Burqa-clad woman. But, considering the low level of connectivity in Sudan, how much influence could a YouTube clip really have?
From Flickr user GlamourShootR
No Quick Fix For DDoS Attacks
The back and forth of DDoS attacks continues, with the notorious message board site 4Chan now the most recent player to find itself on the receiving end of a major attack. As 4Chan Tweeted yesterday, "site temporarily unavailable due to DDoS -or- we figured @MasterCard, @PayPal, and #Visa were lonely."
Will most sites - from human rights bloggers to corporations - end up resigning themselves to DDoS attacks? The most recent report from the Berkman Center for Internet & Society suggests that this might be the case, at least for the former, which are unlikely to have the massive resources required to forestall an attack. The authors surveyed independent media and human rights-related sites, reviewed media reports of DDoS and other cyberattacks, and interviewed publications who have suffered from such attacks. While they found that there is no silver bullet to fend of an attack, the authors do share a number of recommendations for sites that may experience attacks.
The Internet Freedom Debate Moves Forward
Professor and author Clay Shirky explores the political impact of social media in a new article for Foreign Affairs. He believes that the U.S. State Department's Internet freedom agenda is short-sighted because it is primarily focused on short-term country- or tech-specific goals. He argues that securing the freedom of personal and social communication among a population should be the agenda's first priority, rather than the current focus on supporting specific tools or campaigns aimed at specific regimes.
From Flickr User rogimmi
Digital Activism Digest: Venezuela, Venezuela
The digital activism digest is a round up of interesting stories related to technology, activism and social entrepreneurship. Want to point something out? Send a note to tips@movements.org or Tweet @aym.
Taking on State Control of Information in Singapore
Despite Singapore’s high level of development and prosperous economy, press freedom in the Southeast Asian country is lagging and the government has been accused of using fear to silence dissident voices. Mainstream media is largely government-owned and is known for towing the government line when reporting the news.
To fill the void, a handful of bloggers founded The Online Citizen (TOC) in 2006, a website that publishes articles touching on political issues and sensitive topics not typically being discussed in the mainstream press. TOC covers a number of issues including homelessness, the plight of migrant workers, gender issues, income inequality, and the death penalty. Stories frequently appear questioning government actions as well.
What tactics has TOC used to expand its readership and build a community of citizen journalists? How has the government reacted to this alternative news platform? Check out our latest case study to learn more.
Belarusians Out On the Street After Rigged Elections, from Twitter user @ljoksa
What Can We Learn From the Belarusians?
The fraudulent elections in Belarus yesterday, and the ensuing violence as police cracked down on demonstrators, were not especially surprising. It might be useful though to try and look at what can be learned from the Belarusians' attempt at protest in the face of massive, and technologically savvy, repression.
Young woman in a computer lab, by Flickr user McEntegart Library
Digital Activism Digest: In the US, Are Digital Natives Losing Their Edge?
The digital activism digest is a round up of interesting stories related to technology, activism and social entrepreneurship. In today's post, Pew finds that the gap between young people, or millenials, and older people is shrinking, and that older generations are more likely to engage in civic activities than millenials; The New York Times magazine has a feature story on Tor, a tool for browsing the web anonymously;MediaShift publishes a pretty awesome guide to publishing content for audio on mobile phones; what changes on the ground politically as a result of protests?; and more.
Want to point something out? Send a note to tips@movements.org or Tweet @aym
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