Looking back on the past,
Haaretz interviews Salman Rushdie, who discusses the
upcoming film adaptation of Midnight's Children, analyzes the
Arab Spring, and reflects on the
controversy caused by the publication of
The Satanic Verses: "
British Airways refused to accept Rushdie as a passenger, fearing the plane would be blown up in midair. A Pakistani film portrayed the writer as a pro-Israel alcoholic who murders Muslims. British censorship prevented the film's screening, but Rushdie, always a fierce advocate of freedom of expression, demanded that it be shown."
Previously on MeFi: Rushdie (2, 3); Haaretz.
posted by reductiondesign
on Oct 24, 2011 -
27 comments
Russia Uses Microsoft to Suppress Dissent - Adding to its
long-running series on corruption and abuse in post-Communist Russia, the New York Times has reported on Russian authorities using the pretext of software piracy to seize computers from journalists and political dissidents critical of current policies. In a surprising twist, lawyers representing Microsoft have been found working with Russian police, despite reporters and NGOs providing evidence of legitimate software purchases. An
official response to the NYT piece suggests impostors claim to represent Microsoft in Russia, and notes the company's offer of free software licenses to these and similar groups.
posted by Blazecock Pileon
on Sep 12, 2010 -
25 comments
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has published a
criticism of Burning Man, LLC's
Terms and Conditions, saying that the automatic rights assignment to BMOrg for photos & video taken during the event is "creative lawyering intended to allow the BMO to use the streamlined “notice and takedown” process enshrined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) to quickly remove photos from the Internet" and that this is corrosive to our freedom of speech. Burning Man
responds.
posted by scalefree
on Aug 14, 2009 -
123 comments
The kidnapping of Philip Rizk; later they tried to
get his father as well. Philip has now been
freed.
The detention of protesters highlights Middle East governments'
ambivalent attitudes towards support for the Palestinians.
Here it is worth noting of course that Philip is not
alone in his arrest. Another blogger
Diaa Eddin Gad has also been arrested as have
several people attending a Muslim Brotherhood demonstration. A strong, collective message was sent last February when Egypt and Saudi Arabia introduced a
pan-Arab regulatory framework for satellite television stations. The document, titled "Principles for Organizing Satellite Radio and TV Broadcasting in the Arab Region," clearly targets independent and privately owned stations that have been airing criticism of Arab governments.
This has helped trigger a
Revolution, Facebook-Style.
[more inside]
posted by adamvasco
on Feb 11, 2009 -
5 comments
Should Michael Reagan be free to say
this on syndicated radio? Should Mark Dice be free to say
this (NSFW audio) on his website?
[more inside]
posted by an egg
on Jun 14, 2008 -
172 comments
Two Yale Law School graduates who allege they were subjected to a campaign of online
harassment file
suit against the
site's owner and two dozen
internet trolls for copyright infringement, defamation, and a variety of other tort and IP claims. In the latest developments, the website's owner was
dropped from the lawsuit, and another
defendant moved (seemingly pro se) to
quash a subpoena served originally on their ISP to reveal their identity.
[more inside]
posted by Law Talkin' Guy
on Feb 28, 2008 -
25 comments
An Indonesian TV crew was invited to Malaysia for their Visit Malaysia Year 2007 campaign but encountered many problems.
They write up about it - and start a flurry of comments and controversy across the Malaysian government about blogging. [more inside]
posted by divabat
on Apr 6, 2007 -
14 comments
Malaysian bookstore Silverfish Books recently
pubhlished a list of books restricted by the Malaysian Home Ministry (confiscated at the border by Customs) - a list that includes
Chinese teapots,
children's prayers, and
Dora the Explorer. Banned books & magazines
aren't exactly news in Malaysia; indeed, possession of said books can lead to
severe penalties, even jail time.The Opposition
has made a statement before, but that hasn't led anywhere. However, since Silverfish's list, Malaysian bloggers have had enough with the arbitrary and Kafka-esque bans and restrictions, and have come together to form
Manuscripts Don't Burn, to protest and talk about banned books and the larger issue of freedom of speech in Malaysia.
posted by divabat
on Nov 7, 2006 -
19 comments
PM of Malaysia: Those who spread untruths on the Net will be detained Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, warned all bloggers that "if information in blogs, websites and online portals were incorrect, bordered on slander, caused disturbance or compelled the public to lose faith in the nation’s economic policies, their authors would be detained for investigation". The Malaysian government is even
considering adjusting the Printing Presses and Publications Act^ to include blogs and online media.
This comes hot on the heels of a government-ordered
media blackout on
Article 11, a coalition of NGOs dedicated to upholding the principles of Article 11 of the Malaysian constitution, about freedom of religion, after
several protests claiming Article 11 to be anti-Muslim and confusing it with the now-defunct
Interfaith Comission Initiative, which aimed to be a body of people of different faiths raising awareness about diversity of religion and working together on religious issues.
Minister of Energy, Water, and Communications Dr Lim Keng Yaik said that they will
not censor the Internet (as promised when the
Multimedia Super Corridor was launched), but after events such as prominent Malaysian political blogger
Jeff Ooi being investigated over a supposedly offensive comment on his blog entry about Islam in 2005, and alternative news source
MalaysiaKini's office
raided after carrying a letter critical of the ruling party's policies in 2003, no one is really quite sure.
posted by divabat
on Aug 3, 2006 -
16 comments
The Ninth Circuit (
maligned by
many as a
hotbed of extreme
liberal judicial activism,
but defended by
others PDF) issued its opinion in the case
of
Harper v. Poway Unified School District last week. Judge Stephen Reinhardt - who, to some people,
embodies
the
alleged evils of the Ninth Circuit - issued the
majority opinion, and Judge Alex Kozinski filed a
strong dissent. The majority opinion held that a high school
principal who ordered a student to remove his T-shirt that said "Homosexuality is Shameful" did
not violate the student's First Amendment rights, reasoning that "limitations on speech" are
permissible in cases where speech is "derogatory and injurious remarks directed at students'
minority status such as race religion and sexual orientation," and the limitation is "narrow, and
applied with sensitivity and for reasons that are consistent with the fundamental First Amendment
mandate." [more inside]
posted by Pontius Pilate
on Apr 26, 2006 -
152 comments
Anti-Porn Law Is Unconstitutional A federal court in
U.S. v. Extreme Associates has struck down the federal anti-obscenity law. In this case, the government argued that "entertaining lewd and lustful thoughts stimulated by viewing material that appeals to one's purient interests . . . . is immoral conduct even when done by consenting adults in private." The court, however, wanted no part of this moralizing, as it declared "upholding the public sense of morality is not even a legitimate state interest."
posted by expriest
on Jan 23, 2005 -
36 comments
Terrorising free speech. Al Lorentz is a reserve Non-Commissioned Officer currently serving in Iraq. His blazingly clear, succinct article on Iraq, titled
"Why we cannot win", has raged over the wires (also at MeFi) since it was published on LewRockwell.com. Now, the military chain of command is considering charging Al with violation of Article 134 for making a statement with the intent to promote disloyalty or disaffection toward the U.S. by any member of the Armed forces. The military is also considering charging Al with violation of 1344.10, the conduct of partisan political activity, and violation of Standards of Conduct for unauthorized use of Government assets to create and email stories.
posted by acrobat
on Sep 29, 2004 -
30 comments
'Gay' Is Not a Dirty Word. The ACLU is outing a Louisiana Elementary school which punished a second grader for using the word "gay" when answering a classmate's question about his family. Not only did the teacher freak, sending little Marcus to the principal's office for using a "bad word", but the school made Marcus go to a behavioral clinic the following week and repeatedly write “I will never use the word ‘gay’ in school again.” Great use of a teachable moment for all.
Extra credit assignment
(these require Acrobat):
(Student Behavior Contract) (Behavioral Incident Report)
posted by msacheson
on Dec 2, 2003 -
91 comments
In a new twist to a theme discussed
earlier on MeFi, on language censorship (but in an entirely different case) the UK might be the first country to jail a man for using
a single court-prohibited word in public.
As repellent as the defendant's behaviour was, can such a case of censorship and prohibition of freedom of speech ever be justified?
posted by Blue Stone
on Aug 12, 2003 -
36 comments
Danny Glover is a no good communist according to MSNBC's right-wing pundit Joe Scarborough. Scarborough is taking credit for forcing MCI to drop Glover as a spokesman because Glvoer's views are "too far to the left." Add this to the
Bull Durham fiasco, and Sean Penn's claims of a
new blacklist start to look pretty real. Do we only have freedom of speech if we agree with the neo-conservatives?
posted by hipnerd
on May 19, 2003 -
78 comments
Anti-Bush T-shirt banned at Michigan school
"DEARBORN, Michigan (AP) -- School officials ordered a 16-year-old student to either take off a T-shirt emblazoned with the words "International Terrorist" and a picture of President Bush and or go home, saying they worried it would inflame passions at the school where a majority of students are Arab-American. "
That amazes me. Heard the same thing with a canadian teenager wearing
this Tshirt of his favorite rock star, Matthew Good.
"Freedom of fashion?"...
posted by Sijeka
on Feb 23, 2003 -
43 comments
Finally! Someone is taking a stand about freedom of speech on the internet. Although it is AOL (who I dislike), it is high time someone other then the ACLU take a stand for freedom of speech on the internet. (And there isn't anything wrong with the ACLU, just that it is nice to see someone else come in and back them.)
posted by da5id
on Mar 5, 2001 -
8 comments
Anonymous speech on the web is not protected. A Florida court ruling could force forum hosts to identify posters by name, if they post defamatory messages. Could this ruling lead to more civil exchanges on the net, or will curtailing unfettered speech reduce the amount and scope of many discussions?
posted by mathowie
on Oct 16, 2000 -
33 comments
