Global Media News

Syrian Electronic Army Hacking of Twitter and Websites

In March 2013, according to the Washington Post, people from the Syrian Electronic Army - a group which supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - hacked the Human Rights Watch (HRW) website and Twitter feed. The hackers did not take over the entire site, but made posts announcing they were there and condemning the HRW: "'All Your reports are FALSE !! Stop lying!!!' one message read. The messages on the HRW site redirect to the homepage of the Syrian Electronic Army."

The HRW "has conducted a number of searing investigations into the human rights abuses of Assad’s regime since fighting began in Syria." The Syrian Electronic Army used underhanded tactics in an attempt to fight back and defend their president from these reports. On Twitter, they merely posted a triumphant tweet linking back to their posts on the HRW website.

A few days later, according to The Guardian, the same group hacked the BBC weather Twitter feed and claimed to have also hacked @BBCarabicOnline and @bbcradioulster, but those hacks were not confirmed. Much like with the hacking of the HRW feed, the fake tweets held little content; the first tweet: "Syrian Electronic Army Was Here via @Official_SEA #SEA #Syria." and the second: "Long Live #Syria Al-Assad #SEA."

 The hacks were short-lived and apparently superficial. Things could have been much worse because, according to the Washington Post, "the NGO [non-governmental organization, in this case HRW] works with many activists and civilians on the ground in Syria and other countries, whom they are careful to keep anonymous. So far, there’s no evidence to suggest that the information has been compromised."

The Syrian Electronic Army has been around for a few years and, according to The Atlantic, in 2011 they were "operating with at least tacit support from the regime" and using "DDoS attacks, phishing scams, and other tricks to fight opposition activists where they're strongest -- online." In the recent attacks, the group had some success but did not do significant damage to their so-called enemies. In the future, security should be tighter on the previously-hacked pages to prevent this from happening again. The Syrian Electronic Army will not stop trying to get their message out, but they will not stop groups like the Human Rights Watch from reporting on the terrible things happening in Syria.

Afghanistan Bans Pakistani Papers!

In late September Afghanistan's government put a ban on Pakistani newspaper.  There has always been friction between the two countries but this put it over the top. Afghanistan leaders' man reason for this ban  was because they felt that the Pakistani papers supported the Taliban militants.

The Dawn reports: 

"In a statement, the ministry said the newspapers were a conduit for Taliban propaganda.

 The news is not based in reality and it is creating concerns for our countrymen in the eastern provinces of Afghanistan,” the ministry said in a statement. ”Also, the newspapers are a propaganda resource of the Taliban spokesmen.” 

This seem to be yet another case of censorship within a country and another battle for freedom of information for that country's people. Although this is  strictly speculation but the government are not taking any chances with this. It is unfortunate because now the people of Afghanistan can no longer receive news from Pakistani. 

The BBC News reports:

"It authorized police to impound Pakistani newspapers in the three eastern provinces of Nangarhar, Kunar and Nuristan. The news paper is a propaganda resource of the Taliban spokesmen" and has ordered police forces in east Afghanistan to confiscate all copies."

With the police of Afghanistan seizing all the Pakistani papers that is currently in the country and stopping all papers from entering the boarders of the country, it is clear that the government is serious and will put down any kind of support the newspapers may bring the Taliban.

Rod Norland and Declan Walsh of The New York Times reports:

"Intermedia Pakistan, an aid group that specializes in news media development, recently conducted an analysis of how Afghanistan is portrayed in the Pakistani news media. Its executive director, Adnan Rehmat, said there was a strong pro-Taliban bias after the 2001"

Afghanistan and Pakistan have always had problems and in the past and Afghanistan has portrayed Pakistan in a negative light and by banning their newspapers makes the Pakistani image worst in the eyes of the people. This could be a possible first step to Afghanistan banning any outside information that would go against the government.

China Blocks Radio Broadcasts from the BBC News?

On Monday February twenty fifth 2013 the China blocked the shortwave broadcast in english  that was coming from BBC News. This not the first time China has tried to limit the information that was coming into the country from the outside world.  

BBC News quoted their director of global news Peter Horrocks

"The BBC strongly condemns this action which is designed to disrupt audience's free access to news and information."

BBC News are on of the leaders in world information. China is doing an injustice to their people by with holding information form their people. 

According to ABC News:

"The jamming of broadcasts in China is being timed to cause maximum disruption." "In the past jamming frequencies was also a tactic used by communist nations to block BBC broadcasts during the Cold War."

For China to start using old tactics to keep outside information from reaching the citizens really shows the extant that they are will to go control the media within the country. The out sourced information is only to benefit the people of China not put down the Chinese government.  

Scottish Soccer Player Charged for Racist Tweet

    Scottish soccer player Leigh Griffiths has been arrested and charged under the Communications Act.  This news comes from BBC News.  Griffiths has made bail and will report to court at a later date.  Section 127 of the United Kingdoms Communications act states

"(1)A person is guilty of an offence if he—

(a)sends by means of a public electronic communications network a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character; o

(b)causes any such message or matter to be so sent."

 

     Griffiths tweet directed at Zak Iqba, was deemed racist for saying "back to your own country"                                                                  

    While I do agree the the comment was racist and uncalled for i do believe in freedom of speech.  I dont believe that there should be criminal charges against comments made on a social networking site.  I think matters such as this should be left to the website to deal with.  I believe the proper action would be for twitter to delete the comment and ban Griffiths account and no police charges.

                                                           

A Glow in the Dark E-Book?

According to the NYTimes, people will now have to know what they are getting in to when they purchase an E-book reader. Many people who buy E-book readers are unaware that when they purchase a book from a company, they are committing to that company's choice of books for as long as they have that e-book reader. That is because people are unaware that the book formats of the different E-books are not compatible with each other. In other words, it is not possible to read a Kindle book on a Nook or a Nook book on a Sony Reader.

What makes things even more complicated for customers to choose which tablet to buy are the continous advanced installments. According to BBC news, it is without a doubt that the new Barnes & Noble's Nook Simple Touch with Glow-Light gave customers something to think about. Now the "Simple Touch with Glow-light"provides an LED-based lighting system in its frame that users turn on when the ambient light becomes low.

Before, there were only E-books with E Ink screens that has no color. To solve this problem the advancement after the E Ink screens are the LCD color screens. The Nook Color and the Kindle Fire both have these attributes but they are a problem in the price range for customers. The cost of these tablets are over two hundred dollars. To add, it can not be used for reading in the sun because the screens wash out.

According to FoxBusiness, the Glow-light Nook is self illuminating and gives what readers been asking for. "The glow ink eliminates the number-one problems couples have in bed – having their sleep interrupted, or being prevented from falling asleep, when their partner reads with the light on,” Barnes & Noble said in a statement.

The Nook offers a low price, long battery life, a screen that you can see at anytime and anywhere, even in the dark, and it solves a couple's problem of not being able to sleep because of their partner reading with the light on. The cost of the Nook is $140 which is very reasonable. The impressive Nook is supposed to be available in the stores in May.

 

Is Google Googling you?

Google has come under increased scrutiny when they were rumored to have violated people's personal rights and viewed people's personal information, such as emails or passwords, with0ut the individuals consent.  The Federal  Communications Commission(FCC) has stated that although Google has not violated any major laws it was indeed partly responsible and was fined $25,000 as a result.

The scandal is centered around an engineer, which has been labeled as anoymous name of "Engineer Doe", who worled for Google andtold Google officials that they can collect payload data from individuals which then can track the individuals wi-fi networks and location. Payload data is the data sent over the internet which contains vital information on location, wi-fi and other important info and Google was accused for using this to steal individuals personal information. In a report with the Washington Post the FCC has stated that Google has used street viewing cars for this, "On at least two occasions Engineer Doe specifically informed colleagues that Street View Cars were collecting data."

According to BBC News the information gained from the reports were going to be used for other Google projects, the FCC has stated, "Engineer Doe intended to collect, store and review payload data for possible use in other Google projects." This news is alarming news as internet safety is yet again another major topic. Google is a major giant in the media asit has alot of power and can get away with scandals such as these. What's even more of a concern is that Google is affiliated with many different forms of technology and media such as E-Mails or G-mail, you-tube, maps, search engines, advertising, etc, and will use this to collect more data on individuals. Google will probably use this info that people store on other sites which they are affiliated with to promote their products, spread their information, control internet content and what not.

Scandal in the Chinese Communist Party

As of late Bo Xilai has come under alot of scrutiny. Bo Xilai is a former Chinese politician who held many top seats in the Chinese government but was removed from his position amongst heavy allegations. The allegations all started when Bo Xilai's wife was accused of murdering English businessman Neil Haywood in November 2011. The problem arose when Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun went to the US consulate with documents about their crime and other scandalous info and threatened to turn them in. Wang was then detained and sent to local authorities by Xilai's police force where he was interrogated and investigated.

This led to public outcry and eventually Bo Xilai was stripped from his position and now faces serious out-lashes from the government and public. The Chinese Communist Party has now begun a propaganda campaign to dehumanize him signifying the impact of this case for not only Xilai but the whole Chinese government itself. The situation is truly an ironic one as Xilai used to manipulate the media himself for personal gains now gets a taste of how dangerous the media in a controlled state can be. The country has asked for many of the news and media agencies in the country to show support for the state and to attack Xilai in an attempt to "unify" the country but this has been a difficult task as the country is divided on the issue. Many people in the country such as the pro-communist supporters are in favor of Xilai and have supported him extensively while many liberal or progressive figures in the country are opposed to Xilai and viewed him as a criminal. David Bandurski an editor for the Chinese Media Project in Hong Kong described the situation,

“We haven’t seen this kind of direct meddling with the media across the board in a long, long time...You can really sense the anxiety and the uneasiness.  They’re pushing so intently this message of unity and solidarity, and you know all is not well.”

The case is having an enormous impact on media in China and even some abroad.  According to BBC news a Chinese based website located in North Carolina has been hacked and shut down due to their extensive coverage on the story. The manager of the site has stated that Chinese security forces has shut down the website in an attempt to stop the coverage of the news spreading internationally. This alone signifies how interesting the case really is as China doesn't want any bad press overseas that can potentially be harmful for their government. 

Media in China is an extremely sensitive and private issue due to media in the country being state run and monitored. Certain media networks that are popular internationally, such as Google and Facebook, are banned in China due to fears of their "western" influence. However, many in the country turn a blind eye to the censorship due to the strong economic growth the country has been achieving over the past decade which has helped modernize the country and reduce poverty.

Here's the Wall Street Journal with some interesting coverage on the case

 

Hide your Wives and Daughters!!

With the rise of technology and media should we be focused on protecting and concealing our identities? Russian developer, i-Free, has removed their app after serious concerns over privacy and safety issues. I-free created their app, Girls Around Me, which used info from Foursquare a social network that specializes in location based networks. This allowed users of the application to track other users who checked into the program and allowed them to view their publicly viewed photos. The app also has received over 70,000 downloads during the period it was on Itunes. Users of this application could view other user info on them such as preferences, appearances, hobbies, etc. However, the main issue of the application is that this application led to stalking in which the users of the application, who were mostly men, would stalk women who had accounts and tracked them down. This led to an outcry by the women who claimed their privacy and safety rights where being violated. 

I-Free has responded back to critics claiming they were being made into scapegoats for the incidents that occurred and claimed that no harm was being done. Here is their official statement to the Wall Street Journal. Some key points of the statement were:

Girls Around Me does not allow anonymous usage of the app. It is impossible to search for a particular person in this app, or track his|her location. The app just allows the user to browse the venues nearby, as if you passed by and looked in the window. The Girls Around Me user has to be registered in Foursquare and must be logged in this service to be able to see anything in Girls Around Me.

I-free uses this as their main defense as they argued that none of the info on their app was leaked. In a sense I-free is correct as users had to sign-in with the application in order for their location to be revealed and to view other users locations. People simply must watch out for the applications they sign up for and observe them with great detail.  In this new age of media and technology there are many new developments that can pose to be threats to privacy and safety. Here is another key statement regarding their privacy policies

We understand that privacy is a serious matter. We were planning to continue developing the app and limit it to showing only public places and venues. We understand that user generated data might not reflect the real public or private user space (a user can indicate his private space as public and vice versa), but we intended to bring our best effort to work on the available APIs to develop filters to limit user access only to public venues shared by other users.

This is where the main issues arise from, violation of privacy. Users were angered as they thought their privacy was being jeopardized by using this app. According to the BBC news, i-Free used Facebook information to display images of nearby users who checked-in. This resulted in a wave of users, mostly guys, stalking girls who had checked in to the application. Here is Alan Dowell with the Wall Street Journal discussing the situation in a nutshell

I-free

Ultimately, this should be a lesson for all social network users as this is an issue for all social networks. Just how public are these social networks? When you sign up for a social network site your info will be there publicly and anyone viewing your info can easily save your info. 

 

Angry Birds Cartoon Series

 

Angry Birds is supposed to branch out in to an animated series, game designers Rovio confirmed. The plan is to start a run of fifty two episodes starring Angry Birds, brought to you by Disney. According to The Telegraph, each cartoon will be two to three minutes. Nick Dorra, the head of Rovio's animation, states "We're going to roll it out on all possible devices, we want to be on all screens."

This very popular game of aiming destructive birds at pigs has been downloaded over 700 million times. The game is being played by over 30 million people and now that the new Angry Birds game came out last month, "Angry Birds in Space", the number is destined to increase dramatically. With these numbers, there should be no questions asking why create a series.

The animated series will express the deeper thoughts and feelings of the reason why the birds are angry. According to BBC news, the series is important for receiving new fans because some people may not want to or be able to play the game. People will be able to interact and experience it on different level.

The TV series will begin this all but a film version of the game will not be released until the year 2015. Rovio also announced that Angry Birds will be in children's parks too. The parks will have animal spring riders, swings, sandpits and climbing towers. It will open in places in Britain.

Whitney Houston's Album Price Increase Causes Controversy

According to BBC news, a record company has been targeted after Whitney Houston's album price skyrocketed hours after she had been pronounced dead. Houston's "The Ultimate Collection", was the second top-selling album on itunes Monday morning.

Originally, "The Ultimate Collection" came out in 1997 and of course it was record breaking. After her death, it was expected that her album to top various charts again and probably pass her own records. A similar outcome occurred after music legends like Michael Jackson and Amy Winehouse died.

Of course a certain company tried to use this to their advantage. According to The Guardian, Sony music was the one to use these facts to their advantage and increase the price of the album. In the Apple itunes store, the retail price of the album increased from 4.99 pounds to 7.99 pounds to be specific and of course this angered many music fans. 

This scheme to gain more money did not last for long and was returned to the price it was before the day after. Fans described this act as sneaky, deceitful, and unloyal towards the music industry especially Sony music. It was an attempt to gain profit from Houston's greatest hits because tributes were skyrocketing. Songs like "I will always love you", and "I wanna dance with somebody" were included.

According to the Business Insider, an insider of this whole controversy claims that this was not an act of deceit although, it was wrong. After all, Houston's  - The Ultimate Collection and Whitney - The Greatest Hits were in the top three albums on itunes.