Full Coverage: Information & media

31.08.2004 Even as the number of phones rise in urban India, the growth in rural areas has fallen sharply in the last three years — lines added in 2003 are a third of 2002 and in 2004 they were half of 2003.

27.08.2004 Poverty and overpopulation are two of Mexico's biggest challenges. In Mexico, Population Media Center (PMC) is working with the Adolescent Orientation Center (CORA) of Mexico to produce a series of radio mini-serials mixed with talk shows in the five states of Mexico with the highest fertility rates. These programs have been developed by young people and are aimed at youth audiences.

26.08.2004 India’s first feminist publishing house Kali for Women gave birth to Zubaan and Women Unlimited last year. Zubaan is taking forward Kali’s mission in gender publishing. Kali’s co-founder Urvashi Butalia will be spearheading the activities at Zubaan. In an interview with Divya Chandel of OneWorld South Asia, the firebrand publisher speaks on the state of gender publishing in South Asia.

26.08.2004 As the world's most prestigious sporting event comes to a close this weekend, a global human rights group has warned China - the hosts of the next Olympics - to improve "its embarrassing record of continuing human rights abuses" before hosting the 2008 games.

26.08.2004 The Togolese parliament has softened the West African country's harsh press laws which previously imposed jail terms of up to five years on journalists found guilty of insulting the government of President Gnassingbe Eyadema, Africa's longest serving head of state.

26.08.2004 The Togolese parliament has softened the country's harsh press laws which previously imposed jail terms of up to five years on journalists found guilty of insulting the government. This is one of the measures aimed to meet EU conditions for resumption of aid.

25.08.2004 The banning of a private television channel in the northeast Indian state of Manipur combined with the federal government's accusation Tuesday that at least five nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in the region have links with militants has triggered a controversy in this already volatile region.

24.08.2004 After the Indian electronic media's overkill of the hanging of murderer and rapist Dhananjoy Chatterjee, which spurred a rash of play time hangings by children in his home state of West Bengal in eastern India, popular folk opera plans to exploit the story, prompting fears that it will further impact young minds.

17.08.2004 An international media watchdog has condemned efforts by the Maldives government to combat political dissidence by cutting off the south Asian nation's Internet links last week -- the latest in a series of measures to block freedom of information on the island.

16.08.2004 The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), an organization representing over 500,000 journalists worldwide, launched a global campaign Monday - including a protest march in India - urging Indonesia to refrain from jailing three journalists under the country's draconian defamation laws.

13.08.2004 Given the current media environment in Zimbabwe, free and fair elections in March 2005 are highly unlikely, a fact finding mission to Zimbabwe has said in a report released by the Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA).

12.08.2004 A recent decision by the government of Mauritius to investigate the possibility of instituting sanctions against private radio stations has raised concern among media freedom groups.

11.08.2004 The Media Institute of Southern Africa (MISA) and Gender Links are launching a new award to recognise excellence in reporting on gender issues in the region. Open to journalists from countries belonging to the Southern Africa Development Community, including Seychelles, the Southern Africa Gender and Media Awards seek to reward stories that raise critical debate, show balance and challenge prevailing stereotypes.

11.08.2004 Panos and the Global Knowledge Partnership (GKP) are inviting journalists to apply for the 2004 "Reporting on the Information Society" awards, which recognise incisive reporting on the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on society.

09.08.2004 As an increasing number of countries around the world adopt freedom of information (FOI) laws, the important task of monitoring and assessing whether governments are meeting international standards on free expression is falling to civil society organisations. Thanks to a new tool developed by the Open Society Institute's Justice Initiative, that task should now be easier.

03.08.2004 Kenya's press have angrily demanded the sacking of the country's foreign affairs minister over his announcement that seven hostages held in Iraq had been released, which it said turned out to be a "cruel hoax".

03.08.2004 Global AGORA is based on the premise that strengthening capacity for knowledge generation and dissemination can contribute to improved health, nutrition, and education on the part of the world's poor. Launched in October 2003 by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Natio (UN), AGORA is an effort to provide free or low-cost Internet access to over 400 major scientific journals in agriculture and related biological, environmental, and social sciences. The AGORA website is available to researchers, policy-makers, educators, students, technical workers, and extension specialists in public institutions in developing countries worldwide. Users can browse, search, and access the full text of online scholarly journals, which are selected for their relevance to developing countries' needs.