MIDEAST: No Ambulance, Call the Radio

"I am bleeding uncontrollably, I need an ambulance." That was not a call to emergency services, it was an appeal broadcast live on radio in Gaza City.

Q&A: Crossing the Red Lines in Egypt

Launched in 1995, Al-Dustour was closed by the government three years later after publishing articles critical of the regime of President Hosni Mubarak. Following a judicial decree, the newspaper began printing again in 2005.

COLOMBIA: Violent Society, Violent Schools

In a survey carried out in 807 public and private primary and secondary schools across the social spectrum in the Colombian capital, 56 percent of students said they had been robbed within the school premises.

MEDIA-AUSTRALIA: Aboriginal Radio Holds Its Own

When the Brisbane Indigenous Media Association (BIMA) applied for a community radio license 15 years ago they had to compete with a Christian group which argued that there were more Christians than aborigines in Brisbane and thus merited a license first.

MEDIA-COLOMBIA: Unraveling the “New” FARC Announcement

Colombian and international media outlets reported Thursday and Friday that the FARC guerrillas had "ruled out" the release of Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt in an article issued after a French emergency medical mission to save the gravely ill hostage got underway. The problem is that the FARC statement is actually more than two weeks old.

ENVIRONMENT: Major Climate Campaign Hits U.S. Airwaves

Building on his Oscar for the documentary "An Inconvenient Truth" and his 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on climate change, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore Wednesday launched a 300-million-dollar media campaign to mobilise the public for concrete action to reduce global warming.

POLITICS-US: Media Wrong on Rev. Wright, Critics Say

Amid the explosive controversy over remarks made in sermons by Sen. Barack Obama's former pastor, critics are charging that the U.S. mainstream media has distorted his comments, failed to understand the African American church, and sought to punish the Democratic Party presidential hopeful through "guilt by association".

MIDEAST: This ‘Bombshell’ Took a Year Falling

A recent article in Vanity Fair magazine "exposing" a U.S.-planned coup attempt against Palestinian resistance movement Hamas last year has ignited a storm of debate about Washington's Middle East policies. Yet for more than nine months, details of the plot were reported in the independent Arabic press - and elsewhere - leading some observers to ask: where was the mainstream media?

POLITICS: U.S. Image Improved Slightly in 2007

After three years of steadily declining ratings, global perception of the United States as a positive influence in the world appears to have improved marginally during 2007, according to a survey of 23 countries released by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Wednesday.

LATIN AMERICA: Newspaper Owners Take Aim at Venezuela

The midyear meeting of the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), which represents newspaper owners in Latin America, was overshadowed by the antagonistic relationship between the commercial media and the government of Venezuela, where the meeting was held.

MEDIA-INDIA: Bulletin Boards Keep Tibetan Exiles Updated

While the mid-March anti-Chinese protests in Tibet sent campaigners and sympathisers running to the Internet for news, or to post blog entries, Tibetan exiles in this northern Indian town turned to the lowly community bulletin board.

RELIGION: Dutch Anti-Islam Film Goes Public

Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders finally posted his 16-minute film against Islam on the web Thursday evening. The film 'Fitna', long controversial ahead of its release, appears less incendiary than expected, commentators say, but can be seen as provocation nonetheless.

SOUTH ASIA: Indian Films Back On Pakistan’s Big Screens

Domestic worker Naziran Begum has only one passion in life - watching Indian films. After a hard day’s work, she settles down before her cheap 14-inch TV set to flick through a myriad of movie channels for a mere 150 rupees (3.75 US dollars) per month.

MEDIA-SRI LANKA: Edgy Customs Crack Down On Books

Media freedom has hit a new low in Sri Lanka.

ARGENTINA: TV Serial Raises Awareness on Trafficking in Women

The soap opera has proved itself an effective medium for portraying social problems in Latin America, and now a popular one in Argentina is addressing an issue on which the news broadcasts have remained silent: the disappearance of women for commercial sexual exploitation.

CULTURE-US: High Fashion Still a “White Affair”

Supermodel Tyson Beckford was disappointed with New York's 2008 Fashion Week, and not because he had a problem with the designs, patterns, fabrics or materials used. Instead, he was critical of the model selection.

MEDIA-MALAYSIA: Bloggers On Opposition Benches

The presence of five bloggers on opposition benches in Malaysia’s newly elected parliament must be galling for the ruling National Front (NF) coalition, which was returned to power in Saturday’s general elections minus its long-held two-thirds majority.

MEDIA-FIJI: Hold Firm Against Gov’t Pressure – Journalists Urged

Amid fears of a new clampdown on media, following the expulsion of Australian expatriate newspaper publisher Russell Hunter, journalists in this Pacific Island country are being urged by activists not to succumb to intimidation by the interim government.

BALKANS: Who Knows What Is News

In the face of continuing threats, Serbia's B92 radio and television station has taken its logo off its equipment. Its offices now get police protection.

POLITICS-BURMA: Mobile Phones, Radios Keep Resistance Alive

Somewhere in the dilapidated city of Rangoon is a man on the run since August last year. He has sheltered in over 10 homes so far. But he expects to continue avoiding arrest by Burma’s dreaded military or intelligence forces.

BIODIVERSITY: Life Under the Macroscope

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