Global Media News

Cartels Target Narco Corridos Singers

 

  Norteno Corridos is a popular genre of music in Mexico. This folk-like poetic music has a history of telling stories and ballads. As drug cartels have come to power in Mexico, an offshoot genre has been created and is known as Narcocorridos; the music still tells stories and ballads, but the music is about the cartels themselves. Narcocorridos's lyrics glorify the drug cartels and their illegal activities, which often take deadly turns. 

    Rogelio Brambila Lizárraga, 22-year old member of a Narcocorridos group known as Los Plebes de Arranke (Above) was found dead in the driver side of a car in March, the victim of gunfire from at least two firearms. Javier Rosas, another narcocorridos singer is in critical condition after being shot six times during another incident in which he found himself under fire from an AK-47.

    The cartels and corridos seem to work together with one another, albeit in a very deadly manner. The songs help as a sort of publicity for drug kingpins, telling of which cartels are the most dangerous and what horrific exploits they're known for; the narcocorridos singers use a traditional Mexican art to gain a fan-base, but their gruesome lyrics maintain that popularity. It's a well known rule of entertainment that many have an attraction to the morbid, to violence, to shocking lyrics. As the death toll in narcocorridos/cartel related violence rises, perhaps these entertainers will think twice about the true price of fame.

Delhi Bus Gang Rape Documentary Banned in India

 

  In 2012, a 23 year old female student in Delhi along with a male companion were victims of a vicious assault. The young woman had been brutally gang raped on a public bus for several hours before being left to fight for her life in a hospital. In the end her injuries were so bad that she died from them. Wishing to shed light on the crime, director Leslee Udwin interviewed one of the rapists in prison and made a documentary about it. The documentary titled "India's Daughter" has been banned from release in India.

    Every country has problems with different forms of censorship, but one must wonder with India being the world's largest democracy, why is free speech being stifled? The home minister Rajnath Singh conveyed a feeling of shame brought to his country by the words of the rapist, Mukesh Singh. He and many others believe that the film glorifies the criminal and gives him a platform to share his sick and perverted views on women's place in Indian society. As noble of a gesture as this might be, banning the film undermines a much larger problem in Indian culture; despite being such an advanced nation, India is another in a long list of countries that suffers from misogynistic societal norms. 

    These norms include but are not limited to the popular South Asian practice of "Eve Teasing". Eve Teasing is in its simplest form, sanctioned sexual harassment. Women in South Asian
countries experience constant verbal abuse, groping, pinching, pushing, and poking from men who are just having "fun" in one of the most juvenile ways they can. There's a slew of laws and practices that value men over women in this culture, and perhaps that is the reason why showing this movie has been banned; it might not be that the country will be ashamed that five Indian men committed such an atrocity, but rather that the views expressed by these rapists coincide with views expressed by many people who have been raised in the same culture. The director (right) of the documentary has said that her work can be used as a "powerful tool for change".

    The documentary has been unofficially screened in the slum homes of the rapists, and will hopefully be shown to more upper class Indian residents to enlighten them not only to the mindset of the men who committed the crime, but also to the underlying problem that as long as societies throughout the world, not just in India, continue to devalue women, these atrocities will continue to happen.

China Makes It Difficult For Tech Companies to do Business

 China New Information Gathering Idea Rejected By the U.S 

Chinas new ideas promote gathering the information of tech companies users. The laws they are trying to in force require tech companies to turn over "snooping" mechanisms to the Chinese government.   The United States is against the act of China trying to enforce laws to collect user data. China's inquiries are mainly about tech companies encryption keys to their codes for personal data. The sharing of user data can threaten the U.S of economic cyber espionage.  In an interview Obama stated his concerns for China requiring tech companies to give personal data to their firms. 

"This is something that I’ve raised directly with President Xi," Obama said. "We have made it very clear to them that this is something they are going to have to change if they are to do business with the United States." (BBC)

Obama spoke on cyber security and consumer protection at Stanford University. Obama felt it would be critical for any international company to prosper while collects data to keep track of user data. He stated, "I don't think there's any U.S or European firm, international firm that can get away with that whole sale turning over of data".

China is concerned with any possible threats from religious extremist or separatists. "Beijing has argued the need to quickly ratchet up its cybersecurity measures in the wake of former NSA contractor Edward Snowden's revelations of sophisticated U.S. spying techniques." (reuters.com) 

 

Japan's Economy Boosted Thanks to... Dragon Ball Z?

Popular all over the world, Japanese animation (Commonly known as anime) has become a multibillion Yen export. Lots of Anime series and movies are based off their illustrated counterparts, Manga (Japanese comic books). If a single story is created in manga form, chances are it can be turned into an anime series, launch action figure, video game, and apparel sales, even inspire live action films. In some cases, theme parks could even spawn from the womb of artful creation that is manga/anime. 

In 2009 Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso aimed to create 500,0oo new jobs, raise exports of Japanese "soft power" (Anime, film, manga, games, etc.) from 2% to 18% and in doing so, save the economy. Since Japan relies so heavily on overseas sales, it's no wonder the popular anime/manga series Dragon Ball Z (above) has made its comeback in the last few years. 

Although the series ended in 2003, Akira Toriyama's brainchild has still maintained a cult following, remaining one of the most popular anime series in the world. DBZ's follow up series Dragon Ball GT, not so much. Even though the series ended in 2003, it was remastered, re-edited and re-released in 2009 as Dragon Ball Z Kai. The series has still retained its popularity, tying with Spongebob Squarepants in cable TV  ratings just last month. 2013 saw a new feature length animated  film carrying the title of Dragon Ball Z: Battle of the Gods. (right)
This film was greatly anticipated by the American fans who grew up in the 90's watching the original show. It's anticipation was met with a theatrical release in over 350 theaters in the U.S. and Canada in August of 2014.

The trailer for another DBZ film, "Resurrection of F" (below) has just surfaced all over the internet, exciting fans worldwide. Some may have criticisms of the film but regardless, another film has emerged from a franchise thought to be dead! This is closely following the American release of the video game Dragon Ball
Xenoverse (left) in the U.S. This is a win-win for fans of the franchise, but also for the Japanese economy which has been following through on their plan to revitalize through the creation and export of more anime/manga, and other soft power products. Perhaps this is contributing the the upward trend the Japanese economy is predicted to have this year.

Japanese Pornography becomes Popular in China

It's no secret that Japan and China have a very brutal and bloody history . China's malice towards Japan  goes back ages, some of the most prominent conflicts between them being the Nanjing Massacre and the Japanese atrocities of World War II. China's hate for everything Japanese is prevalent, especially in 2012 when anti-Japanese protests resulted in the vandalizing and destruction of any Japanese stores or stores selling Japanese goods; during these acts of violence protesters were met with no resistance from Chinese law enforcement.

So keeping in mind how much distaste the Communist-run country holds for Japan, it becomes even more of a point to note that one of the hottest commodities in China is Japanese Pornography. The Chinese Communist Party does not allow porn in the country, they've even gone to such lengths as to hire officers to keep track of and censor pornography in China. Still, where there's a will there's a way. From bootlegged DVD's to torrent downloading, Japanese porn is one of the many vices that has found its way into the Chinese underground culture.

Japanese adult film Actresses have shown interest in helping to aid the relief of China's citizens in more ways than one. Japanese porn stars such as Sora Aoi (now retired, right) have joined Chinese social media sites, visited the country, and helped raise money for Chinese charities and disaster reliefs. Capitalizing on their fame in China, these actresses seem to have become
unofficial ambassadors who are subtly smoothing over tensions in their rival countries.

    China's official news agency Xinhua  has perhaps inadvertently shown support for the Japanese adult industry by listing the twitter page "Absolute JP Porn" as one of the pages it follows. This seems like too much of a publicity nightmare to be true, but there is visual evidence  showing Xinhua as a follower of a site that they should have no part in. There were also rumors that a Chinese company called "Qihoo 360" offered a night with Japanese porn star Julia Kyoka (left) to its male employees as an incentive award for successful employees come Chinese New Year. Qihoo 360 has since denied that there ever was such an award, probably to the dismay of many a lonely worker of the firm.

It's hard to take the idea seriously, that Japanese pornography might be the one way to link two cultures that have been at odds for decades. Japanese porn thriving in a country where there would normally be zero demand for such entertainment is another example of media making the world a little bit smaller by bridging cultural gaps. Perhaps the presence of a genre that many consider to be filth has begun to extinguish a fire that has been burning for too long.

Comedian Makes Run for British Parliament

Politics is often considered one of the taboo subjects one should not discuss, lest they wish to start an argument. People have particular convictions about political opinions, and will defend them to the death. So what are politicians to do when political satire comedian Al Murray made his bid for parliament? Popular for his on stage persona, "The Pub Landlord", Murray has decided to run as his character.

Not many are taking his bid seriously, including UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party) leader Nigel Farage. Farage has sarcastically said that Murray is welcome in the race, and that there will be "serious competition". Farage has also shown no sign of being intimidated by tweeting "the more the merrier!" at Murray. Although Murray stands a slim chance of winning votes for any sort of office under his designated FUKP (Free United Kingdom Party), he does appear to have quite the historical and political knowledge one would look for in a candidate for office.

    Murray's policies do not seem to warrant serious consideration, like taking the U.K. to outer space by 2025 or lowering the price of a pint of beer. Despite his most likely not attaining a seat in
parliament, perhaps his running for office will do well to shake the apathy of younger voters who might take more of a notice in politics by seeing an entertainment figure in the political spotlight.

U.K. Entertainment Lacks Ethnic Diversity

    The internet has been buzzing ever since Academy Award nominee Benedict Cumberbatch used the term "colored" to describe Black actors during an interview. Many used social media to lash out against Cumberbatch's insensitive use of the term, missing his overall message.  Cumberbatch used the term whilst sharing his opinion on how Black actors are underutilized and underappreciated in British television and film; this opinion does not belong to him alone, and is shared by much of the entertainment community in the U.K.

 

    "Selma" star David Oyelowo came to Cumberbatch's aid by calling the backlash "disingenuous" and saying that the message of his words was immediately overlooked by those who live in an age  "--where people are looking for sound bites as opposed to substance." Cumberbatch has since apologized publicly for his lack of better judgment in this matter. The question still stands, are people of color being ignored in the U.K's entertainment industry?

 

    Oyelowo says yes, citing his own career as an example among many. Known for his role in the series "Spooks" on BBC One, Oyelowo had not gained international notoriety until moving to Los Angeles in 2007. Since his relocation he's played iconic roles in  "The Butler", and most recently in Golden Globe Best Motion Picture "Selma" in which he portrays the late Martin Luther King Jr.(left)  His role opposite 
Matthew McConaughey in "Interstellar" might prove his point a little better; he plays a character who was not written as a person of color. He and Ryan Gosling actually auditioned for his role in "Interstellar"(right). This is an occurrence that Oyelowo says "doesn't happen often." Oyelowo has commented on the roles available-- or that should be available to black actors in Britain as his reason for coming to the U.S., 

 

"We make period dramas in Britain, but there are almost never black people in them, even though we've been on these shores for hundreds of years.--I thought, 'Okay, you are stopping people having a context for the country they live in and you are marginalizing me."

    Other British-born actors of color like Idris Elba (left) have mentioned the difficulty involved with trying to  attain a role in the entertainment industry of their mother country, "every job I ever got I had to fight for. I’m an odd, tall, black man that doesn’t quite fit in." While in the U.S. Elba has also played iconic roles such as that of Nelson Mandela (right).   He's also co-starred alongside Chris Hemsworth in Marvel's "Thor" series. Since his success in the U.S. he's said, "--here I am 25 years later in what I consider to be a very well-rounded career." 

    Is the answer for U.K.'s actors of color simply to move to the states to attain careers in Hollywood? "our most talented actors are getting increasingly frustrated and having to go to America to succeed" says British comedian Larry Henry (Bottom Right). Back home, Henry's been pushing for a more ethnically diverse entertainment industry. This includes jobs not just for Black actors, but for what's known as the BAME (Black, Asian, Minority, and Ethnic) community on and off camera. The industry's BAME involvement is at a startling 5.4%, says Henry, which is "an appalling percentage because the majority of our industry is based around London where the black and Asian population is 40%."  
In addition to citing these statistics during his lecture at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA), he commented on Idris Elba's success with his show on BBC America, "Luther" saying that Elba stars as an "intellectual, troubled maverick cop who has no black friends or family.", then questioned "You never see Luther with black people. What's going on?" A good question considering Elba's success can provide faith in financial backers for a show featuring a Black protagonist but not in other Black actors.

  Director of BBC Television Danny Cohen has responded to Henry's indignation,

"BBC Television is committed to diversity both on and off screen but we're always looking at how we can improve, including the recent launch of apprenticeship schemes with both the Mama Youth project and Stephen Lawrence Trust for example"

The Mama Youth Project is a charity whose aim is to provide disadvantaged young people with experience  and skills that will help them to secure "long-term and fulfilling employment." BBC TV and Sky have sponsored courses that spend 12 weeks training the youth involved with this charity in media production. BBC has announced its collaboration with the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust to "launch a three-month training programme for young people from BAME backgrounds." Channel 4 has said that BAME companies have used the channel's Two-Million-Pound Alpha Fund which aims to support and develop ideas from an ethnically diverse talent base across the U.K.

    Changes are being made to include a more diverse entertainment industry, even if they are being made slowly. The U.K.'s largest film fund, the British Film Institute announced in 2014 that they're looking for anyone applying for financial backing to demonstrate diversity on and off camera, including members of the LBGT community, women, and people who have disabilities. Hopefully the U.K. will take note of the money Hollywood is making with British actors of color, and start thinking twice before they refuse roles to these same actors.

Revolutionary Rap in North Africa

    

    Ever since its inception in New York, Hip Hop/Rap has become a voice for the voiceless, speaking out against social injustices. Urban youth were let down by America and created an art form with which to strike back and claim an empowerment that would help their voice span the globe.

    This is the case in North Africa as many rappers have emerged as a result of corrupt politics, conflict, and revolution. Though their lyrics are not in English, their message is clear: "We want change." Revolution has occurred in places like  Tunisia, Egypt, Algeria and Libya, but some artists feel there has not been any change. They've used their lyrics encouraging people to become more politically conscious as well as call out corrupt government officials and institutions. Rap has now become the unofficial soundtrack for revolution.

    Among these rappers is "El Général" who in 2010 released a song called "Rais Le Bled" which translates to "Head of State" in English. The song spoke out against former Tunisian president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. El Général was arrested in 2011 for this track, and released after three days of interrogation. Social media helped his cause as it does many rappers of the region. The track was released on YouTube and was able to circumnavigate the world. This is the case with the majority of North African rappers who don't need to professionally record and produce their music, lest they be censored by the powers that control media distribution. Using Hip Hop and the internet in tandem have made it an unstoppable force, helping these artists to gain international fame. With that fame, comes their message and themes of political consciousness. These rappers have actually been able to develop an American fan base, and visit New York to perform in the home of Hip Hop.

    In some ways, American Hip Hop has devolved from political activism to promoting consumerism, lavish lifestyles, violence, drug use and sexual promiscuity. It's because of this modern mainstream music that Hip Hop is  berated for having an adverse effect on those who listen to it, primarily modern youth; Parents groups will say Hip Hop has no place as an art form, or even as music. They'll say that it influences listeners to act out the lyrics they hear in songs and take after the rappers that sing them. Hopefully in this case, Hip Hop's detractors are correct. If music can influence listeners that much, then perhaps revolutionary lyrics can shake modern day youth out of apathy and into a role of self-empowerment and self-advocacy; to fight for the future they will one day be responsible for.

Uber Car Service Fights Against ‘Ban’ in Germany.

Uber, “Everyone’s Private Driver”.  The slogan represents the car service company all too well. Once you have a smart phone, you then have the ability to hail a Cadillac Escalade and then be escorted around a city as if you were Barrack Obama. Not only can anyone use Uber, but anyone with a license can drive for Uber as well.  Uber is combining smart phone technology and taxis to change transportation. Private car services and taxis are now losing business to the new company. Claims are being made that Uber drivers don’t have as many restrictions or have to obtain as many permits as the other companies.  Germany is now placing a ban on Uber drivers. Is Uber so successful because there aren’t as many limitations, or is the company just changing the game of the car service industry for the better?

            You can access and Uber driver in over 100 major cities and over 30 countries around the world. Paris, New York City, London, you name it and Uber most likely has base there. But in Berlin, Germany a ban is being placed on the usage of Uber. The Frankfurt court claims that uber doesn’t have the necessary legal permits to work in the city.  While the case is being resolved in court, Uber was told that if they decide to continue operating, and lose the case then they could potentially be charged 300,000$ per ride they provided during the ban.

            This isn’t the first time the American company had a ban placed on it in Germany’s court system. In April a similar case was over turned. Now that the demand for Uber is growing more popular, other car service companies are making stronger attempts to have them play by the rules.

            ‘‘Anyone who is willing to play by the rules is welcome in the market,’’ a Herman Waldner quote published in a NY Times article. He is the owner of one of Berlin’s leading taxi companies.  That is the biggest complaint from other car service companies; they just want uber to have the same regulations and to create fair competition.

            Uber claims its services are insured and that the drivers and riders wellbeing is a major concern. But it hasn’t seemed to stop the protestors yet. All precautions are taken and now it is a measure of survival of the fittest.

           

Taxi drivers protesting against Uber in Berlin.

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/technology-29027803

http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/08/14/uber-to-fight-ban-in-berlin/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=0

 

Fascination with Korean tv Drama

It feels like it was just yesterday when I was channel surfing one night and stumbled on an Asian show with sub-titles. It seemed interesting, so I continued to watch it. A few days later I found myself at 11pm watching the same show. Like a bait to a fish I was hooked. I loved the story line, the music, and I loved the culture.

This was in 2004 when I lived in Philadelphia, nine years later back in New York City I find myself more in-depth with  the Korea culture and their language. I can tell if someone is speaking Korean, Chinese, and Japanese. I know how to say thank you, hello, good-bye, and how are you. If someone is speaking Korean I can even catch words and phrases and know their meaning. I can attribute all of this to my watching of Kdramas.

I never thought this would be a phenomenon, until four years ago when my niece who also lives in Philadelphia was watching a Kdrama via online. I wasn't really surprised my niece was fascinated with Kdrama, because as a child she was engrossed in Japanese anime movies, and tv shows. She even took Japanese as a second language in grade school. She actually got into the kdrama because her other aunt would watch it and she fell in love with the culture.

I was shocked never knew it was online, I never imagined or thought to google it. My niece told me all the platforms that were available to watch not only Kdramas, but dramas from China, Japan, and Taiwan. The site is Drama Style, Viki(similar to hulu), Drama Fever, and there were more. On these sites there were also movies, and American movies as well. It was great.

Kdrama can be watched by all ages. The dramas are very PG. There are also all types of dramas such as a family drama, an action drama, a teen drama, and historical dramas. Unlike American dramas where sex is displayed all the time, in Kdramas kissing is like having sex.

According to PR Newswire, Tom Larsen, President, YA Entertainment.

"The 'Korean Wave' and high quality K-dramas have captivated US audiences, including a growing viewership turned off by the sex, gore, and violence that drives today's American entertainment industry."

Could it be Americans want to watch something that has a happy ending. Even if it fake and very unrealistic. Are Americans over the raunchiness and over the top sex craze on tv. Maybe. This past year we have lost iconic daytime soap operas that's been on for years on tv. One by one we are losing what made American soap a hot thing to watch.

The best thing about a Kdrama is (drumroll please) they end. A storyline ends and I can watch another. Most of the shows can run about 16-20 episodes and is about an 30-45 minutes per episode. Others can be 50 episodes, but those are usally the long dragging ones that needed to end around episode 30. Historical dramas can be around 150 episodes depending on the storyline.

I love watching my Kdramas and the fact that I am able to pick up and watch it whenever I am  available is great.