In The News

Poor Nations Complain Not All Charity Reaches Victims

Stephanie Strom February 1, 2006
Aby Ibrahim Niger’s health minister late last year voiced dissatisfaction with international aid groups. Now other poor nations and those affected by disaster are also expressing mistrust about NGO reliability - how money is raised versus how it is spent. Leaders, including those from Indonesia and Sri Lanka, charge that NGOs rely on specific crises to collect funds and then spend the money...

The Basics: How to Outwit the World’s Internet Censors

Tom Zeller Jr. February 1, 2006
While China’s censorship of the internet receives increased attention, less publicized are the system’s imperfections. Relying on loopholes, greater freedom can be sought, even in a restrictive environment. One way individuals subvert a watchdog government is by surfing the web through a proxy server, which dissociates computer addresses from visited websites. In China, an underground network of...

Denmark PM Rejects Apology Demand

January 31, 2006
Islam traditionally considers any depiction of Muhammad disrespectful. Muslims in the Arab world were aghast, then, when they learned that the Danish newspaper “Jyllands-Posten” had published cartoons portraying their prophet as a terrorist last fall. Tensions have now come to a head, after a Norwegian paper reprinted the cartoons and as the Danish government insists that it cannot punish “...

Ramallah’s Virtual Reality

Henryk M. Broder January 27, 2006
If the Palestinians truly want to destroy Israel, they are probably alone in the Arab world. With Israel committed to the unilateral resolution of conflict with Palestine, the cries for justice from Palestinians inspire less desire to wipe Israel off the map. Still, the Palestinians have embraced a “virtual” reality – a version of their own condition that is primal and reductive, with a focus on...

No Booze or Jokes for Googlers in China

Declan McCullagh January 27, 2006
By launching its search engine in China and following Chinese government censorship laws, Google has sparked controversy. But the controls seem more haphazard than just dictated by political consideration, according to a CNET News.com survey of the new search engine. Sites opposing the Communist government do not show up in Google searches, but can be reached through links and foreign-service...

Let There Be Wi-Fi

Robert McChesney January 26, 2006
To most people, broadband is simply a faster internet connection than dial-up. When it comes to powering economies, however, broadband could be as essential an innovation as electricity. Soon, television, radio and the web will find their way into a person’s home as a result of a single broadband connection. In the largest sense, broadband is poised to become a vital part of economic, personal...

Internet Privacy in China and the US

John Shinal January 24, 2006
Citizens in China and the US can no longer depend on their Internet searches remaining private. Last week the US Justice requested information from four major US search engines on users’ search results. The request, ostensibly to assess the frequency of searches for child pornography and to prevent children from viewing harmful material, raises questions about personal freedom and the right to...