In The News

Threaten One, Intimidate a Million

Henryk M. Broder February 2, 2006
With bomb explosions, assassinations and riots coloring the recent history of Islam in Europe, the already tense state of relations took a serious turn for the worse over some cartoons. Drawings in the right-wing Danish daily “Jyllands-Posten” last autumn satirically portrayed the images of Prophet Mohammad – unleashing outrage throughout the Muslim world, including a boycott of Danish goods in...

Behind the Mic

Khalid El-Farra February 2, 2006
Sportscasting is an art, and the African Cup of Nations will soon put the Arab football commentators in the spotlight. Relying on satellite channels to compare styles, many Arab football fans grumble that their homegrown commentary has a long way to go before meeting professional standards set by the West. Grievances against Arab commentators include crushing melodrama, ignorance of the game...

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 “...

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...

Hookah Bar Becomes the ‘Anti-Loudoun’

Michael Alison Chandler January 20, 2006
At the Shisha Café and Lounge, like cafés throughout the Middle East, customers smoke flavored tobacco from brass hookahs and water pipes. Yet Sisha is in Virginia, not Baghdad or Beirut. Originally intended to serve the Middle Eastern communities in Loudoun and Fairfax counties, the hookah bar instead became a hit with the college crowd - most of whom are not of Middle Eastern origin. With the...