The Freedom of Expression Project

This selection of news stories will keep you updated with what's happening in the world of networked communications. If you see any other interesting stories, please send them to us.

For updates on the battle against online censorship, visit Global Voices.

(Click here to access the archive of news stories)

Information and Debate

SMS news for low-income families in Brazil
An SMS service providing the rural poor in southern Brazil with local news has proven to be very popular.

Barbados – Blogging: The local press takes note
Denis Jones, a blogger in Barbados, reports on how the local press is starting to take current affairs bloggers more seriously. he argues that blogging is helping more controversial issues to be discussed in the public domain through bypassing the mainstream press which has traditionally self-censored.

Civil Society

Millions march against Colombia rebels
The global protest against the Colombian rebel group FARC on the 4th January stemmed from mobilisation on social networking site Facebook, with 100,000 people in 165 countries confirming their participation on the site.

DoGooder.tv – A video sharing site for non-profits
A new video sharing website promises to give those with a charitable cause a direct link to philanthropists, allowing them to explain in their own words what the situation is, what they are achieving and how others can best help.

Brazil – Blogging helps the police to mobilise and protest
Brazilian police are using blogs to mobilise support for their protest over pay, leading to investigations and crackdowns by the force’s internal affairs unit. The protests have so far led to the sacking of the military force’s commander and the resignation of over 40 officials.

Culture and Education

US Presidential Candidates Reveal Positions On Some IP Issues
This article outlines the positions of US presidential candidates on intellectual property issues with, for example, the Democrats being more supportive of network neutrality and all candidates keen to protect IP in general.

Music Is (A)live - But Music Industry Looks For Future
Music industry experts are calling for music companies to make the shift from the ‘dead’ age of music industry 1.0 into the age of 2.0, adopting more flexible business models through, for example, moving away from per-unit revenue models.

European Court: Governments May Require ISPs to Disclose Data On Suspected Pirates
The European Court of Justice has ruled that, whilst governments are not required to order ISPs to hand over the personal details of copyright infringers on the internet, they are permitted to do so under law. Whilst this ruling was prompted by a Spanish music company demanding user details from the national ISP, similar cases are occurring across the world, for example in Singapore. Meanwhile, the manager of rock band U2 is calling for governments to hold ISPs accountable for the traffic that flows over their networks.

Drivers of Change

New cable cut compounds net woes
Damaged submarine cables have caused severe disruption of internet services in Asia and the Middle East.

Searching for the next big thing
Microsoft has launched a bid to take over rival company Yahoo in a move that has caused much speculation about the implications for online the advertising, applications and search industries. Google has criticised the move, arguing that it violates competition (anti-trust) law.

India’s greener IT revolution
One of the minds behind India’s agricultural ‘Green Revolution’ is planning an IT revolution to get the entire Indian population online.