David Sasaki

Writers in Guatemala

If Shakespeare or Lao Tzu were teenagers today would they have their own weblogs? We’ll never know, but we can be sure, thanks to Renata Avila’s review, that up and coming poets and novelists in Guatemala are taking to the Internet as a medium of expression and community to interact with their readers.

Arabeyes: Palestinian Jordanian Anyone?

Amira Al Hussaini translates a post by Jordanian blogger Hareega expressing his frustrations with the lack of discussion around prejudice in Jordan, specifically discrimination directed toward Jordanians of Palestinian descent.

Syrian Independence Day and Elections

Syrians celebrated National Independence Day last week, commemorating the last withdrawal of French troops in 1946. Here is a rundown of how local bloggers commemorated the day. Also: analysis of the opposition’s decision to boycott the elections.

India: Politics and Technology

“The technology sector is the engine that is pulling the great Indian train forward in fits and starts and it seems that there be a change in the engine crew,” writes Kamla Bhatt in an interesting look at the intersection of technology and politics in Indian society.

Sketches of Contradictions, Complexities, and Beauty of Life in Uganda

From an anti-vegetarian food conspiracy to Kampala’s swankest coffee shop; from forgotten Congolese women immigrants to the changes experienced at Nsazi Island, Ugandan bloggers ” detail the contradictions, complexities and beauty of daily life.”

The French Presidential Election: A View From Outside the Metropole

France’s first round presidential elections last weekend not only brought a record turnout of voters to the polls; it also inspired a wealth of commentary from Francophone bloggers in locations as diverse as the Congo, Morocco, Lebanon, Tunisia, the Caribbean, and Tahiti. Thanks to Jennifer Brea’s faithful translations and added context, we too can take part in the conversation.

Roundups

Students at Addis Ababa University go on strike in Ethiopia, blogger passes away in Peru, Japan’s trilingual rapper, and much more can be found in today’s Global Roundups.

David Sasaki: EconSM: "I'm not going to change my cell phone network just because HBO is on Cingular"

David Sasaki: EconSM: "you don't overcome the silos of the cell phone networks, you work with them"

David Sasaki: EconSM: "The next frontier is social networking on cell phones."

David Sasaki: EconSM: Ken Stern: It's a good time to be in non-profit journalism which is why people are discussing it as a model