On International Human Rights Day, 562 authors, including 5 Nobel Prize laureates, from over 80 countries have joined together to launch an appeal in defense of civil liberties against surveillance by corporations and governments. Read the appeal and sign the petition.
Read more...
Outraged by the spying practices of the NSA, tech giants Google and Facebook have been calling for substantial reform and more transparency. Political cartoonist Tjeerd Royaards (Netherlands) takes a closer look.
Read more...
On December 4, 2013, PEN PRESENTS: “Who’s Afraid of Free Speech?” brought together writers David Simon, E.L. Doctorow, Masha Gessen, Azar Nafisi, and moderator James Fallows of The Atlantic to address challenges to free expression in the digital age.
Read more...
The Iranian government surprised the world when it announced – via social media – the historic nuclear deal with the UN Security Council. Although Iran’s stance on social media has been softening since the “Twitter Revolution” of 2009, censorship, as explained here, still has a firm grip.
Read more...
Tienchi Martin-Liao chronicles the events surrounding the detention of 16-year-old Chinese netizen Yang Hui, who faces a possible charge of “inciting trouble” under a newly amended law aimed at stifling free speech on the internet.
Read more...
The week’s top news on freedom of expression, journalists in danger, artists in exile, and banned literature. Featured this week: freedom of religion in North Korea, how internet actually works in China, German-Bulgarian writer and NSA critic Ilija Trojanov denied entry into US.
Read more...
The week’s top news on freedom of expression, journalists in danger, artists in exile, and banned literature. Featured this week: Banned Books Week, PEN International passes resolution on Tibet, Chile investigates Pablo Neruda’s death, and jailed Pussy Riot member on hunger strike.
Read more...