The Citizen Lab

THE INTERNET AND MIDDLE EASTERN POLITICS
Posted Oct 11, 2006 in by jaymz. 
Doctoral candidate Ahmed El Gody of the Modern Sciences and Arts University in Cairo discussed how Web usage in the Middle East has contributed to grassroots political activism. From USC Center on Public Diplomacy

Tajikistan Blocks Access to Web Sites in the Run-Up to Presidential Election
Posted Oct 11, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
Tajik Government has finally understood that strict censorship of print media and total control over television and radio outlets is not enough to completely stifle the freedom of speech in the country. Last week, the Communications Ministry launched an unexpected attack against a number of Web sites, the last bastions of freedom of speech for Tajik independent journalists and readers. From NewEurasia

Computer System Under Attack: Commerce Department Targeted; Hackers Traced to China
Posted Oct 06, 2006 in by jaymz. 
Hackers operating through Chinese Internet servers have launched a debilitating attack on the computer system of a sensitive Commerce Department bureau, forcing it to replace hundreds of workstations and block employees from regular use of the Internet for more than a month, Commerce officials said yesterday. From Washington Post

The Internet: Podcast Dissidents
Posted Oct 04, 2006 in by jaymz. 
Yet earlier this year, podcasts of Han's Hong Kong-based pro-worker commentary began circulating on the Internet, opening a new front in the high-tech battle between China and free-speech activists. In podcasts—audio and video files circulated online—those advocates may have found the ideal medium for breaching what critics call the Great Firewall of China. As yet, nobody's figured out how to scan such material for utterances of those telltale buzzwords that trigger the blocking of Web sites, e-mails and blogs. Filtering audio content is currently impossible, and a government ban on all audio or video e-mail attachments would cripple the nation's Internet communications.
From NewsWeek

Thai media situation deteriorating: Broadcasting regulated, Internet webmasters warned. Community radio stations shut down. Self-censorship on the rise
Posted Sep 22, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
The Internet is the latest medium under threat in military-ruled Thailand, as media conditions continue to deteriorate in the first days of the military takeover. The overall environment for the press is unstable, and is being undermined by the day. From SEAPA

Authorities boast of success in Internet filtering
Posted Sep 18, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
Iran is doing its utmost to isolate its citizens from the rest of the world by purging the Internet of independent content, in the name of ‘morality’, says Reporters Without Borders, noting that the authorities even brag about the success of their censorship. From Reporters Without Borders

A New, Computer-Generated Voice
Posted Sep 18, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
The growing appreciation among young Chinese for unfettered news — and their ability to convey their opinions rapidly across cyberspace — is a key reason why Beijing will ultimately lose the information war, analysts say, even if it wins some near-term battles. From LA Times

China Tightens Controls on Foreign News
Posted Sep 11, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
China tightened its control over the distribution of news by foreign agencies Sunday, further restricting international access to the already tightly regulated Chinese media market. From Forbes/Associated Press

UK readers blocked from NY Times terror article
Posted Aug 29, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
The New York Times has blocked British readers from accessing an article published in the US about the alleged London bomb plot for fear of breaching the UK's contempt of court laws. From MediaGuardian

Content-blocking a can of worms
Posted Aug 28, 2006 in Censorship by jaymz. 
More than a decade ago, John Gilmore, one of the founders of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, coined the phrase "the Internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it."
Last week, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission declined to wade into this issue in a case that placed the spotlight on how Canada's Internet service providers treat illegal content that originates outside the country. From TorontoStar