Topic: Censorship

Five things Ron Paul wants from the Republican National Convention

It looks as if Ron Paul is going to be an active participant in the Republican National Convention in Tampa this August.  Here’s our take on the five things Paul hopes to gain from staying within his party’s tent in 2012.

Pakistan bans Twitter, citing blasphemous content

Activists see the government's claims of blasphemy as a convenient excuse to rein in free-wheeling conversations on the social media site ahead of elections.

Out of ideas, Palestinian Authority censors critics

The Palestinian Authority of Mahmoud Abbas is growing increasingly intolerant of criticism. Last week the PA blocked eight websites tied to an Abbas rival.

Russian media: True, we're 'not free' - but we're not Zimbabwe.

Russian media experts and journalists say Freedom House's annual press freedom survey doesn't acknowledge the rise of independent media outlets and social media, which are broadening the landscape.

Anders Behring Breivik on trial: A roundup of global opinion

A roundup of opinions on the Anders Behring Breivik trial and the attention it has received from Norway and around the globe.

New censorship strategy in Sudan

Sudanese authorities have a long history of closing newspapers and silencing journalists, but the government is now pushing papers out of business by targeting their sales, writes a guest blogger.

Google, an underdog in Asia, lays plans for Taiwan data center

Taiwan gets Internet traffic easily from the United States. I sits at the ends of undersea cables that extend directly from North America before branching off to other parts of Asia.

Thai censors say out, damned spot, out to Macbeth film adaptation

The maker of 'Shakespeare Must Die' is appealing the decision, but Thai bureaucrats are nervous about the movie's political overtones.

Censored: 5 plays and novels banned around the globe

Censorship of the arts has a long history, from ancient Greece to present-day Thailand. Here is a list of five plays and novels banned, for a variety of reasons, in regions across the globe.

Rights at Risk

Are Americans in the process of abandoning their rights?

Vint Cerf of Google on Internet rights – interview

In an interview, Vint Cerf of Google says individuals do not have a right to connect to the Internet, nor does a person have the right to eliminate information that's already on the Web. About China: 'There is much more openness and tolerance of criticism' than the West generally believes.

10 Judy Blume titles to be released as e-books

On March 21, 10 of Judy Blume's books for young readers will become available as e-books.

Supreme Court debate: Is lying about being a war hero protected speech?

Supreme Court justices heard arguments over the Stolen Valor Act, which bars lies over receiving military medals, but the discussion broadened into whether there is any value worth protecting in falsehood.

Myanmar's about-face: 5 recent reforms

Since 1962, Myanmar's dictatorship has jailed the opposition, beat up monks, denied aid to disaster victims, and run scorched-earth campaigns against ethnic minorities. That may be changing, however. Here are five key changes the regime has made in just a matter of months.

Antiabortion activist plans graphic ad for Super Bowl. Can station refuse?

The FCC is expected to rule on whether an NBC affiliate in Chicago must run a graphic ad during the Super Bowl by antiabortion activist Randall Terry, who has declared himself a candidate for president.

Can Facebook and China be friends?

China, the world's biggest Internet market, is a huge draw for Facebook as it prepares to go public, but Beijing is deeply suspicious of social networks that lie beyond the control of the ruling Communist Party.

#TwitterBlackout: Protests brew as complaints over censorship come to a boil

Twitter on Thursday announced it would invoke the ability to censor some tweets on a country-by-country basis. Cue the global backlash. 

Twitter censorship? Posts now yanked country by country.

Twitter messages can now be censored on a per-country basis, allowing posts that are problematic in one country to still appear in others. But some worry this means Twitter has turned its back on free speech.

Kim Dotcom: Are such Internet sensations pirates or hactivists?

Copyright law and its enforcement have dominated the news lately, first with the Internet blackout protests against SOPA, and more recently with the arrest of Kim Dotcom in New Zealand. Here are five international file-share players who have been targets of copyright enforcement.

If feds can bust Megaupload, why bother with anti-piracy bills?

A growing battle over copyright on the internet came to a head this week as digital protests scuttled two anti-piracy bills, police arrested Megaupload's millionaire filesharing pirate, and hackers brought down the Department of Justice website.

US files charges against Megaupload in 'largest copyright case'

US prosecutors say that the video-sharing site Megaupload.com cost the US entertainment industry $500 million. Online activists worry the US case could stifle Internet freedoms around the world.

Department of Justice closes piracy conduit. Is SOPA needed?

Department of Justice conducted a two-year investigation of MegaUpload before closing it down. So why does the Department of Justice need new antipiracy laws like SOPA? 

Would SOPA and PIPA bills 'break Internet?' Anti-piracy measure being revised.

On the verge of passage in Congress, the SOPA and PIPA bills targeting online piracy have been bounced back for revision in the face of a public outcry and high-profile Internet protests.

SOPA blackout: What happened to Wikipedia?

Wikipedia is offline today. Here's why. 

How five websites are protesting SOPA

Five major websites will go dark on Wednesday protesting two Congressional bills, which critics argue could curtail Internet and free speech.    

If passed, The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and its Senate counterpart, the Protect IP Act or PIPA, would allow the US government to seek a court order and even shut down websites that contain content or links to unauthorized copyrighted content.  Moreover, advertisers and Internet service providers would be banned from doing business with transgressors.

Proponents of the legislation include companies that are trying to protect their copyrights, such as the Motion Picture Association of America, The NBA, Pfizer, Nike, L'Oreal, as well as the US Chamber of Commerce, the Fraternal Order of Police, and the US Conference of Mayors.

However,  voices of opposition include Internet giants Google, Yahoo!, Facebook, Twitter, eBay, Mozilla, and Wikipedia – who say that the proposed laws constitute a First Amendment violation, promote censorship, and harm the democratic flow of information.  Check out how five major websites plan to protest SOPA and PIPA: