Pakistan media censorship

Amazon, the world’s dominant online retailer, quietly changed its content policy sometime after August 10 last year to include a ban on “hate speech,” according to reports. According to an Epoch Times analysis of internet archives, no ban on “hate speech” existed on the site’s content policy page prior to August 10. Via the Epoch Times: Previously , Amazon prohibited “products that promote, incite, or glorify hate or violence towards any person or group,” but explicitly stated the policy didn’t apply to books. Its book policy used to contain no mention of “hate speech,” according to a version of the page archived on Aug. 10 . It mentioned Amazon reserved “the right not to sell certain content, such as pornography or other inappropriate content.” The current “Content Guidelines for Books” include a section against “Offensive Content” that reads: “We don’t sell certain content including content that we determine is hate speech, promotes the abuse or sexual … [Read more...] about Amazon Quietly Changed Its Content Policy to Include ‘Hate Speech’ Ban

Brexit leader Nigel Farage said that former President Donald Trump’s speech at CPAC cemented his position as the leader of the Republican Party, hailing the return of a true “opposition” in the United States. Mr Farage said that following Trump’s speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Sunday, it is clear that “Trump’s grip on the Republican Party seems to be as strong as ever”. “I will be the first to acknowledge that we are talking about a cult of personality here, but that is because, in 2021, it is Donald Trump’s Republican Party,” Farage wrote for Newsweek, predicting that Trump will further solidify his power within the party through winning battles against so-called RINOs in Washington DC. Mr Farage said the speech also secured Trump’s role as the true opposition leader in the United States, something which the Brexit leader said has been sorely missing from American politics. The U.S. has not had much in the way of “opposition leadership” … [Read more...] about CPAC Speech Proved It’s Still Donald Trump’s Republican Party, Says Brexit’s Farage

The Islamist regime in Iran reportedly shut down a mobile data network in its southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan this week in response to ongoing protests against the alleged killing of local fuel smugglers by Iranian armed forces. NetBlocks, a worldwide internet access monitor, confirmed a new disruption to internet connectivity in Sistan and Baluchestan province beginning late Saturday, February 27. The monitor confirmed the internet cut-off following days of unverified reports by human rights groups describing “localized regional network disruptions” amid the protests, which began on February 22. Sistan and Baluchestan is a poor, remote province where nearly 96 percent of the population accesses the internet through their mobile phones. The government’s decision to shut down the province’s mobile data network as opposed to the landline internet connection suggests a targeted action, according to the British human rights organization Article 19. “This … [Read more...] about Iran Cuts Off Internet in South as Deadly Protests Continue

A 38-year-old Chinese blogger named Qiu Ziming who writes under the name “Labixiaoqiu” on the social media platform Weibo was forced to broadcast a humiliating video apology on Tuesday for daring to question Beijing’s official narrative of the clash between Chinese and Indian soldiers in the Himalayas last June. After months of refusing to disclose how many casualties it suffered in the Galwan Valley hand-to-hand battle , the Chinese military claimed in February 2021 that it lost only four soldiers in the fight, compared to the 20 casualties that were long ago disclosed by the Indian government. Indian outlets claimed over twice the number of Chinese soldiers died as Indians. A great deal of skepticism was expressed online about China’s claim and their government quickly began arresting everyone who rebuked the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) narrative, charging them with illegally “defaming the country’s heroes and martyrs.” Qiu Ziming appeared on a … [Read more...] about China Forces Blogger into Humiliating TV Apology for Questioning Beijing’s India Claims

By Nectar Gan Updated 0155 GMT (0955 HKT) March 3, 2021 (CNN Business) When Bill Liang realized that popular video download and streaming service Renren Yingshi might be gone for good his heart sank. The website, also known as YYeTs.com , was how the 24-year-old film school student was able to watch hundreds of episodes of pirated American TV shows when he was growing up in northern China. But the site — one of China's largest, longest-running and last-remaining destinations for pirated, subtitled foreign content — was shuttered on February 3 as part of a sweeping police clampdown on piracy. While the website is still live, none of its services work anymore. "I was heartbroken when I found out," Liang told CNN Business. "I feel like there is one place fewer in China through which we can expand our horizons." Police in Shanghai arrested 14 people they claim ran the website and app after a three-month investigation into suspected intellectual property … [Read more...] about How a Chinese website for pirated TV shows became a cultural touchstone for millennials