In The News

Thomas Crampton June 4, 2006
AllofMP3.com owes its global success to low prices and a large collection of music that is normally not available for sale online. However, despite its allure, Allofmp3.com may be illegal. Record companies complain and try to stop the site, but with little luck in a country where digital piracy thrives. AllofMP3.com holds a license issued by a royalty collecting society, but the International...
William Booth June 2, 2006
Hollywood is big business, but the largest portion of its revenues no longer comes from the US. Instead, Hollywood reaps more international than domestic profits, and as a result, the global marketplace influences everything from what films get made to how they are made. In fact, big Hollywood productions no longer make US audiences their primary target and aim to entertain thousands of...
Somini Sengupta June 1, 2006
Like previous versions in the US and the UK, "India Idol" is a singing competition that has become a favorite part of popular culture. The show invites aspiring singers to display their life dreams and perform for a national television audience that then votes for its favorites. The Indian show has two distinct characteristics: Women do not win, and rural and isolated regions of the...
Rousseau Chen May 26, 2006
Like any other residents whose city is featured in a major film, the people of Shanghai have eagerly awaited the Chinese release of “Mission: Impossible III.” Some of the scenes shot in the metropolis, however, must be cut before the film’s release in China, according to a ruling by humorless censors in the Chinese Film Bureau. Images of drying laundry and criminal activity offended the bureau...
Josef Joffe May 16, 2006
Any nation has an array of options for extending influence throughout the world: One is “hard power,” or military escalation. Another method, touted by a group led by Harvard Professor Joseph S. Nye Jr., is “soft power,” or cultural capital deployed across the globe. But soft power can produce antagonistic reactions. US movies, music and education may be popular in other nations, but world...
Fawaz A. Gerges May 11, 2006
Just after Iraqi leaders chose a new prime minister and president, the leaders of Al Qaeda – Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi – hurriedly released a series of statements to the media. The media blitz represents the most concerted effort to date by Al Qaeda leadership to articulate its investment in the ongoing conflict in Iraq – and suggests that a viable government,...
Clive Thompson May 11, 2006
The Chinese are fascinated with the possibilities of the internet. When the head of operations for Google in China gave a lecture at one Chinese university, thousands attended and scalpers sold tickets. Despite strict government controls, the internet and search engines foster learning and a free exchange of ideas – including even China’s long-neglected rural population. Despite censorship, young...