fictionthatmatters:

Freedom of the Press: in the Middle East, widely curtailed and often violated

““The media – old and new, local and international has paid a heavy price for its sustained and courageous efforts to inform local and international populations about the political upheavals in the Middle East.” These comments from Fateh Azzam, Head of the UN Human Rights regional office in the Middle East, on World Press Freedom Day, acknowledge the vital role played by the media in covering events as they have unfolded in the Middle East.”

(via Freedom of the Press: in the Middle East, widely curtailed and often violated)

fictionthatmatters:

Fiction vs. Reality: the portrayal of Chinese people in African pop culture

“While most foreign news and media tends to negatively portray Chinese people living in Africa, for example by suggesting that their presence is colonial in nature, I have been more curious about the how Africans perceive the Chinese people in their midst, and their portrayal in popular culture isn’t a bad place to start.” 

(via Fiction vs. Reality: the portrayal of Chinese people in African pop culture - City Life - This Is Africa)

Salman Rushdie delivers the Freedom to Write lecture at the PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature.

Photo © Beowulf Sheehan / PEN American Center

Eskinder Nega’s Verdict Postponed 

PEN President Peter Godwin:
“We are disappointed Eskinder Nega’s ordeal didn’t come to an end today with the acquittal he deserves. The trial proceedings only reinforced the baselessness of the charges against him, and the court’s explanation for the delay in issuing a verdict—that it needs another six weeks to transcribe the record—does little to inspire confidence in the court’s workings. 

“We ask the world to join with us in pressing the Meles government to bring the unjust persecution of Eskinder Nega and his fellow journalists in Ethiopia to an end.” 

(via PEN American Center - May 11, 2012: Eskinder Nega’s Verdict Postponed)

“Almost a year ago, Swedish foreign ministerCarl Bildt declared before the UN Human Rights Council that the “same rights that people have offline … must also be protected online.” This was the underlying theme of a groundbreaking May 2011 report by UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression Frank La Rue. The report, which was endorsed by 41 governments, detailed how established human rights principles apply to the internet and made recommendations for putting these principles into practice. After a year of inaction, the time has come for a concerted, collective effort by democratic countries to carry out the recommendations of the La Rue report.”

(via A ‘To Do’ List for Internet Freedom | Freedom House)

Julian Sanchez: On Fiction and Surveillance

At this year’s PEN World Voices Festival, the panel Life in the Panopticon: Thoughts on Freedom in an Era of Pervasive Surveillance explored the role of surveillance technologies in our lives. Here we publish the opening remarks by moderator Julian Sanchez, a Research Fellow at the Cato Institute. In insightful, carefully measured prose, Sanchez identifies the complex interplay between fiction and surveillance today.

Photo © Susan Morgan / PEN American Center

(via PEN.org » Blog Archive Julian Sanchez: On fiction and surveillance)