Ecuador: ‘succession politics get ugly’
When the government candidate eked out a victory in the bitter runoff for president of Ecuador in April, incumbent Rafael Correa was ebullient. The willful populist who ran the small Andean… Read more »
Category: Freedom of Expression
Alliance for Securing Democracy will counter information warfare
A bipartisan roster of former senior national security officials have signed onto a new initiative – the Alliance for Securing Democracy – to track and ultimately counter Russian political meddling,… Read more »
Internet the ‘de facto forum’ for Vietnam’s dissenting voices
A prominent blogger and environmental activist in Vietnam was sentenced last week to 10 years in prison on charges of national security offenses, including sharing anti-state propaganda on social media, The New… Read more »
Political bots – ‘propaganda powerhouse’ threatens democracy
Bots airing pro-Kremlin views have flooded the Russian-language portion of the social media platform Twitter, in what researchers from the Oxford Internet Institute’s Computational Propaganda Research Project say is an… Read more »
‘Reckless Exploit’ – Mexican journalists, activists targeted by spyware
Mexican journalists, lawyers and activists were targeted by spyware that is sold exclusively to governments, according to an internet watchdog group’s investigation published Monday, AP reports: Titled “Reckless Exploit,” the… Read more »
Russia’s ‘active measures’ – worse than you thought
Russia’s efforts to hack the 2016 presidential election were much more widespread than originally thought. The Russian campaign hit 39 states — twice as many as originally reported — and… Read more »
Disgust over corruption threatens Tunisia’s trajectory, MENA stability
Armed with banners, placards and cigarettes, dozens of protesters gathered in the Tunisian capital Tunis on Sunday for the first-ever demonstration of its kind – the right not to fast for Ramadan. Popular perceptions… Read more »
Democracies must not fall for terrorism’s ‘strategy of provocation’
How can democracies combat terrorism without undermining liberal democratic norms and institutions? Following the terrorist attacks in Manchester and London, British Prime Minister Theresa May has proposed restricting internet freedom… Read more »
Caught between fear and repression in Bangladesh
The murders of secular activists by violent Islamist militants in Bangladesh have received considerable international and domestic attention, notes a new report from Amnesty international. However, they have taken place… Read more »
Ukraine sanctions Russian social media amid Crimea’s virtual blackout
Ukraine has moved to block access to top Russian social media sites and search-and-email portals, adding them to a list of companies and individuals sanctioned over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea… Read more »