Category Archives: Censorship

Once widely accepted, the practice of licensing journalists is falling out of favour in many countries. The rise of citizen media has posed a challenge for governments to control the flow of news and to define who exactly is a journalist. Yet some governments, fearing the democratisation of media for the loss of power it poses to them, are using old rhetoric to solve a new "problem": What constitutes the news?

In Singapore, headlines cry out: " New censorship rule bans gay content in Singapore ."And in Jordan, an amendment to the Press and Publications Law just enabled the government to block hundreds of sites , among them Al Jazeera and the website of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood.

Who is a journalist?

Today, if you ask the question "who is a journalist?" to a group of professionals, you will surely receive a variety of answers. Expand that group to include individuals from different regions of the world, and the answer gets even more complicated. Another question - what is the role of a journalist in society - does, and has historically, generated debate, perhaps even more so today given the wealth of platforms for news creation.

Post-World War II, many governments seeking to boost development through journalism chose a strategy that involved licensing journalists. In some places, such as Latin America (where nine countries still keep laws on the books requiring journalists to register), journalists have often preferred this system to the alternative - allowing publishers to dictate who can be a journalist.

In most of today's Middle East, licenses are required; and in some countries - such as Saudi Arabia - authorities go so far as to appoint editors to publications. Many African and Asian countries take a similar approach. In the past few years, US politicians have repeatedly floated the idea of a licensing regime.

A license to control

While the original idea to license may have been noble, in this era of high connectivity, new attempts to regulate news content are merely about control.

Over the past decade, many have found the internet a useful tool for circumventing licensing structures, as sites like WordPress and Blogger make it simple for anyone to operate a website. While in some countries online censorship has challenged this alternative, in many others, independent bloggers and journalists have thrived.

Now, a new form of control threatens the ecosphere of digital journalism. Whereas independent journalists and bloggers once circumvented licensing requirements by publishing on sites hosted outside of their countries, some governments - among them Jordan and Singapore - in an effort to rid the network of independent journalism are placing licensing requirements on news websites.

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When regulating the news becomes censorship

One of my friends recently told me a story about the son of her friends. He had to be taken to a psychologist after watching news on TV about a mother killing her child.

At the end of the 18th century, many West European countries banned The Sorrows of Young Werther, a novel by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. The protagonist commits suicide by shooting himself because of unrequited love. The book was banned because of a series of suicides committed by young men in the same manner. Thats when the connection between publication of information about violence and its social effects was made.

The U.S. and many European countries have legal mechanisms regulating the media when it comes to reporting on violence. Many media also have codes and standards about reporting such incidents.

In Britain it is forbidden to show close-ups of severed limbs after accidents. There are clear regulations for how many seconds and how closely you can show such videos. This is not censorship, but a way to be responsible about every word you say and every frame you screen.

In Ukraine, its not regulated. The only thing that can potentially restrain newsrooms are personal ethics of journalists. Unfortunately, not everyone has them.

Just a few weeks ago, I walked into a cutting room and bumped into a young female editor with a very red face. She turns around and tells me: I cant edit this. It was a video of a news item about the rape of a nine-year-old girl. But other people can do it.

Imitation of television

There is a direct correlation between media reports about suicides and the increase in numbers of suicides, especially among teenagers. Suicides, as well as other forms of violence are known to have produced copycats.

Does this mean that news of violence should be hushed? No. It means that it needs to be done carefully and guided by the principle of do not harm. I found a document developed by the department of mental health of the World Health Organization, published in 2000, entitled Prevention of suicides.

In it are recommendations for media workers, how news about suicides should be reported as to not harm society. Its basically a list of prohibitions: a suicide cannot be reported as a routine event. Details should be withdrawn about the exact manner of suicide. You cannot describe the situation that caused it as hopeless and present the reasons as if they justify the action.

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Censorship by violence

EVREN BALLIM AND PAUL SANDLE

Reuters

SUPPORT NETWORK: A protester uses her mobile device as she walks at Gezi Park on Taksim Square in Istanbul.

Turks are turning to encryption software to thwart any ramp up in censorship of the internet after six days of anti-government demonstrations and a wave of arrests reportedly for urging people to protest on social media sites.

Hotspot Shield, a VPN (virtual private network) that disguises users' identities and encrypts traffic on the Web, said more than 120,000 people had signed up to its service in Turkey since the weekend, more than 10 times typical levels.

The software has been used in recent years by democracy movements around the world, including in the Arab Spring, to circumvent government censorship of social media services such as Facebook and Twitter, said David Gorodyansky, founder of Hotspot Shield creator AnchorFree.

Authorities in Egypt, Libya and Syria attempted to close down Internet access completely to quell protests.

Gorodyansky said authorities had not blocked access in Turkey, but they had "throttled down" speeds, making the sites unusable for periods of time.

Police raided 38 addresses in the western port city of Izmir and detained 25 people on suspicion of stirring insurrection on social media with comments on the protest, opposition CHP party deputy Alaattin Yuksel told Reuters on Wednesday.

Izmir Deputy Prosecutor Ali Haydar confirmed that a detention order was issued for 38 people, but declined to give information on charges or how many were detained.

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Turks skip suspected censorship online

Did Public Television Commit Self-Censorship to Appease Billionaire Funder David Koch? (1 of 2)
http://www.democracynow.org - Filmmakers Tia Lessin and Carl Deal say plans for their new documentary to air on public television have been quashed after bil...

By: democracynow

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Did Public Television Commit Self-Censorship to Appease Billionaire Funder David Koch? (1 of 2) - Video

BSC Highlight: Paper Mario Part 9; "Nintendo #39;s Censorship"
Nintendo #39;s Censorship.

By: TheZeldaniac

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BSC Highlight: Paper Mario Part 9; "Nintendo's Censorship" - Video

Yahoo To Read All Your Emails - Google to give info to FBI - Facebook Censorship
Social Media spying heats up: yahoo wants to read ALL your email... including those that are sent to you by others... Google ordered to reveal information to...

By: freeradiorevolution

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Yahoo To Read All Your Emails - Google to give info to FBI - Facebook Censorship - Video

BAR REFAELI LOVES CENSORSHIP DEFYING DUCKIES
Thanks for watching my Tuesday Show, Nation! Month of Free Netflix: http://netflix.com/phillyd Check out my BRAND NEW channel: http://bit.ly/18Of1td Get a te...

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BAR REFAELI LOVES CENSORSHIP DEFYING DUCKIES - Video

In Regard to Media Censorship and Police Terror in Turkey
Calling for Media Censorship Awareness in Turkey featuring Police Terror http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_protests_in_Turkey https://twitter.com/search?q=%2...

By: LrdStudios

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In Regard to Media Censorship and Police Terror in Turkey - Video

Graham Hancock Battles Against The War on Consciousness - TED Talks Censorship
Graham Hancock explains the reasons why mainstream academia and science censored his TED Talk on the May 28 2013 Coast to Coast AM radio show with George Noory. Among the issues raised are...

By: geogaddi00

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Graham Hancock Battles Against The War on Consciousness - TED Talks Censorship - Video

June 4th: Fake Censorship Lift?
Follow us on TWITTER: http://twitter.com/cnforbiddennews Like us on FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/chinaforbiddennews The June fourth anniversary is approaching. Sources have said that...

By: ChinaForbiddenNews

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June 4th: Fake Censorship Lift? - Video