News & Media
‘Learn from failed UK NIR project’
The new government in the UK recently scrapped its decade-long work spending millions of pounds on establishing the National Identity Registration (NIR) number simply because it realised it wasn't workable. This article by Madhumita was published in the Deccan Chronicle on March 22, 2011.
Muzzling the Internet
It is strange suddenly to be confronted with the provisions of a law passed way back in 2008. But why should the Information Technology Amendment Act, 2008, pushed through in the weeks following the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai be making news now? This news item by Sundeep Dougal was posted in Outlook on March 17, 2011.
Battle for the Internet
In this article written by Latha Jishnu and published by Down to Earth, Issue: March 15 2011, the author reports about the events in the United States in the post WikiLeaks scenario.
Catch-all approach to Net freedom draws activist ire
The Internet has revolutionized the way we socialise, date and even protest. Online activism is a faster, more effective way to get more people to react to a cause. But at the same time it is this speed that makes Internet-generated protests a far graver danger than offline protests. Egypt faced an Internet shutdown when the protest started gaining steam and China has been throttled with heavy cyber censorship for years. Unfortunately, silencing the voices of dissent online is as easy as raising them. This article by Annie Johnny appeared in the Sunday Guardian, New Delhi on 13 March 2011.
Cause and effect Facebook-style
While the world is crediting Facebook for triggering the Arab revolution, do Facebook groups in India say anything about top of mind causes for young Indians? Crime touches a chord - the pages that have sprung up for Radhika Tanwar and Aarushi Talwar illustrate this - but it's the ideological issues that have made it to our top five list. Anja Kovas, a fellow at the Centre for Internet and Society, a Bengaluru-based research organisation, analyses the success of these causes.
Govt proposal to muzzle bloggers sparks outcry
A government proposal seeking to police blogs has come in for severe criticism from legal experts and outraged the online community. The draft rules, drawn up by the government under the Information Technology Amendment Act, 2008, deal with due diligence to be observed by an intermediary. This article was published in the Times of India on March 10, 2011.
Anti-Social Network
Social media is driving teens to a reality they can't handle. This article by Max Martin was published in Mail Today on February 27, 2011.
New Indian Rules May Make Online Censorship Easier
Draft rules proposed by the Indian government for intermediaries such as telecommunications companies, Internet service providers and blogging sites could in effect aid censorship, according to experts. The article by John Ribeiro was published in Yahoo News on March 7, 2011.
Social Network Suicide
Those disillusioned with their virtual friends circle are saying goodbye through web applications that wipe out your net identity. What’s more, you can even have your own memorial page, says Sahana Charan in this article published in the Bangalore Mirror on Sunday, February 6, 2011.
New Kids on the Blog
Across the world, the blogosphere is shrinking. But that might not be a bad thing. Look closer, self-indulgence has found newer platforms, and only the fittest and the smartest blogs have survived. This article was published by the Indian Express on February 6, 2011. Indian Express reporter spoke with Nishant Shah.
Can the mouse be a tool of revolution in India?
Do you consider yourself a ‘slacktivist’?” Vikram Sengupta considers the question for a couple of seconds, and then excuses himself. “I’ll call you back. I’m in the middle of something right now,” he says, and hangs up. Being called a ‘slacktivist’ is probably not very flattering, first thing in the morning or at any other time of the day. But this writer has been at the receiving end of endless mails from him, mails which sought to impose a burning moral imperative to sign up instantly and save the grand Canadian Musk Ox or the Mexican Dumpy Frog. The question, therefore, is not unjustified.
What Are You Accused of? Find Out Online
Starting Tuesday, police authorities in the Indian capital will make many crime reports, also known as First Information Reports, publicly accessible from its Web site. The report can be attained by entering details such as the name of the accused or victim and also the area where the crime took place. So far, no crime reports have been posted on the Web site.
Getting Connected
Nishant Shah of the Centre for Internet & Society talks about the growing adoption of social media, and what can constitute a "social media network"
Clicktivism & a brave new world order
THE FIRST decade of this century has been one of accelerated change. The proliferation of the Internet has ushered in ubiquitous transformations in the way we live. And yet, the more things change, the more they remain the same.
Would it be a unique identity crisis ?
The UID project will centralise a humongous amount of data but the fear is that it might fall into the wrong hands.
Nel suk dei nativi digitali. Perché gli studenti 2.0 hanno bisogno di una bussola per orientarsi
Addio al vecchio sapere lineare fondato sulla parola scritta e sulla trasmissione di conoscenza maestro-alunno: imparare oggi ha la forma di un suk arabo nell'ora di punta. Tra social network, video-racconti su YouTube, la musica di MySpace, il linguaggio sincopato delle chat e le bufale online, gli studenti di nuova generazione hanno bisogno di una bussola per orientarsi. Ma la scuola non c'è. O meglio, non ce la fa: a studenti 2.0 corrispondono spesso istituti scolastici da secolo scorso.
A Tweet and a poke from the CEO
The official grapevine has moved online, and Twitter is the new water-cooler.
Mothers discuss kids, music, fashions, on Net
Among the many conversations about behavioural problems seen among teenage children and the benefits of organic foods, there is one that raves about a baby-sitter who takes care of pets too, and one that reviews newly opened art classes in the city. These are not the usual face-to-face discussions among women at a gathering, but threads that run on parenting websites and ‘mommy' blogs that have captured the imagination of many mothers in Chennai.
'Pakistan' hackers target India's top police agency
Cyber-attackers who identified themselves as the "Pakistan Cyber Army" have hacked the website of India's top police agency, officials said on Saturday. The website of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was hacked by programmers who left a message saying that the attack was in revenge for similar Indian assaults on Pakistani sites, Press Trust of India said. The hackers signed their message on the Indian police website: "Long Live Pakistan."
Self-regulation in media and society meet to gain legal perspectives
With electronic media generally expressing its opposition to government imposed regulations, a two-day workshop is being organised here from tomorrow on 'Comparative Perspectives on Media Self-Regulation and Society'.
