In The News

Blocking Hate Sites Makes Them Stronger? Time

Alex Krasodomski-Jones May 22, 2019
Mass killers who attack places of worship or schools often seek attention and announce plans on online. Anonymous internet message boards like 8chan include users who reinforce the extremism and incite hatred. After attacks, community leaders urge monitoring, censorship or site closure. That may draw more users to other provocative platforms. “Blocking access to these platforms would validate...

Ethiopia’s Media, Ethnic Tensions: Washington Post

Paul Schemm April 28, 2019
Ethiopia is undergoing tremendous transformation as the newly installed Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed pushes for broad free speech rights. This has led to a resurgence of a free press and outspoken journalists. The country, only recently embarking on its journey to mend ethnic conflicts and land disputes, faces a dilemma between social stability and free speech protection. Ethiopia will hold an...

EU Copyright Reform: Deutsche Welle

March 26, 2019
The European Parliament approved a new copyright law, 348 t0 274 with 36 abstentions, that protects original content. Social media and other platforms that reprint content are expected to ensure their content does not violate copyright rules, and behemoth Google News would be expected to pay publishers for snippets shown in search results. Some critics worry about internet freedom, but exposure...

Russia Exports, Bans Fake News: Business Insider

Sinéad Baker March 20, 2019
Investigations by governments and internet companies point to Russian meddling during election campaigns, including the 2016 Brexit vote and the US presidential race, with outlandish social media messages and promotion of falsehoods. Yet, Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law outlining penalties for distribution of whatever the state decides is fake news. “With this new law, Russia...

Rappler Editor Arrested: New York Times

Alexandra Stevenson February 13, 2019
Bullying authoritarian leaders cannot endure criticism or democratic checks on their policies by journalists or courts. Agents with the National Bureau of Investigation arrested Maria Ressa, editor of the online news site Rappler. Rappler is a publishing partner of YaleGlobal Online. “Her arrest is the most dramatic sign of Mr. Duterte’s crackdown on the free press in the Philippines,” reports...

Medium: No Thank You, Mr. Pecker

Jeff Bezos February 7, 2019
Jeff Bezos, the wealthiest person in the world, went public with communications from the National Enquirer urging him to stop investigations in exchange for not printing personal photos and texts. “AMI, the owner of the National Enquirer, led by David Pecker, recently entered into an immunity deal with the Department of Justice related to their role in the so-called ‘Catch and Kill’ process on...

Washington Post: Afghans Slam Soviet Invasion Praise

Alex Horton and Sayed Salahuddin January 3, 2019
Donald Trump continues a pattern of rejecting longstanding US national security policies and supporting Russian interpretations by praising the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan as a fight against terrorism. Both the United Nations and the United States opposed the invasion. US intelligence agencies supported Afghan rebels during the war, and the Soviet Union withdrew in 1989. The United States...