COMMENT BLOG
A remark, a critique, an opinion…
Football, free expression, and the defeat of fascism
Football (soccer), the world’s most popular—and we would argue most beautiful—sport, has become a multi-million-dollar industry marked by astronomical salaries, stadiums that look like spaceships, and billion-dollar sponsorship and television deals. The sport is...
Digitalization should carry a planetary health warning
A large part of the world can no longer function without data centres. These are the networked computing and storage facilities that enable the delivery of software applications and data. They are vital to the daily functioning of governments, societies, and users...
It doesn’t have to be hate speech to harm
June 18 is the International Day for Countering Hate Speech and June 20 is World Refugee Day. With migrants and refugees often targeted by hate, it can be natural – and even useful – to mark the days together. Certainly WACC Europe, after their 2017 media monitoring...
#GenerationRestoration: Recognizing media on World Environment Day
This year alone has seen devastating floods in Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya, Tanzania, China, Dubai, Oman, Bahrain, and Qatar. Wildfires broke out in western Canada and Texas. Cyclones swept islands and nations along the Indian Ocean. News reports informed audiences that...
Last chance for a just digital future?
Over the past 20 years, the many structural issues in the world’s communication and information ecosystem tackled by the 2003 and 2005 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) have become more complex, entrenched, and detrimental to democracy and communication...
He who pays the piper calls the tune
The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event to be held in Geneva 27-31 May 2024 will mark twenty years of progress made in the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society, which took place in two phases – Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005. The...
Stripping away media bias in the interest of greater understanding
The Centre for Media Monitoring report “Media Bias Gaza 2023-24” (published 6 March 2024) exposed significant biases in news coverage in the United Kingdom. The report, published by the Muslim Council of Britain, offers a critical examination of media coverage of...
What makes for exemplary war photojournalism?
Nii Obodai, Africa jury chair for the 2024 World Press Photo Contest recognizing the world’s best photojournalism, seeks photography that “shift[s] from hard visualization of violence to a more nuanced approach that empowers viewers towards reaching greater...
Where is the money? How international development is failing democratic communication
In 2016, widespread misinformation fueled hate-filled public debate in the United Kingdon and was a major contributor to the outcome of the Brexit referendum. Since then, the country’s decision to leave the European Union has had very negative economic consequences,...
Turning point for Big Tech?
Apple has been fined €1.8bn by the European Commission for breaking competition laws over music streaming. The EU Competition Commissioner said that Apple had restricted “developers from informing consumers about alternative, cheaper music services available outside...
The weaponization of digital communications
Three years after the Myanmar military seized power in a violent coup, the junta is still carrying out brutal attacks against those resisting its authority. It also uses Internet shutdowns, surveillance, and disappearances to hide its atrocities and to maintain its...
Eroding communication rights top list of global risks in 2024 and beyond
Videos of Elon Musk promoting dubious investments. Popular news anchors advertising all manner of products. Seemingly plausible news articles bearing bylines of known journalists. Welcome to the world of AI-enabled misinformation and disinformation that has rapidly...
PHOTO CREDIT: Paul Jeffrey/ACT Alliance