Today, following an announcement that President Mubarak would hand over power to the army, Egyptians and global observers eagerly awaited Mubarak’s evening speech, only to find that he was late to enter. While waiting, a few Twitter users started up a hashtag, #ReasonsMubarakIsLate, to speculate on his delay and showcase that famous Egyptian sense of […]
In case you haven’t seen it yet, Al Jazeera has instituted a campaign for Americans to demand the channel from their cable providers. I’ve been writing about Al Jazeera in the United States for three years now (see my 2008 Global Voices piece), and have continuously lobbied Comcast, my cable provider, for the channel, to […]
In the summer of 2009, I watched, like the rest of the world, as Iranians rose up against their government, protesting rigged elections. Not speaking Persian or knowing anyone on the ground, I was limited in context and understanding of the core issues, and reliant on Western media–skewed hostile toward Ahmadinejad–for news. Though mainstream media […]