The role of the media
August 5, 2010 3 min. read

As newspapers continue their steady financial decline and the press is criticized for everything from false news reports to jeopardizing national security, those of us who live in the comfort of a democracy may start to say, Who needs them? There are plenty of blogs to fill the gap, and as tech-savvy critical thinkers trained […]

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The New York Times & WikiLeaks in the Wrong
July 26, 2010 3 min. read
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Apparently, the word ‘secret’ has lost all meaning nowadays. The New York Times, Guardian, and Der Speigel have all published reports using thousands of pages of classified American intelligence reports on the war in Afghanistan from 2004-2009 given to them by Wikileaks. The United States government condemned the disclosure of these secret documents and so […]

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Fidel "stealing spotlight"?
July 17, 2010 1 min. read

Already there has been lots of speculation on why Fidel Castro chose this moment specifically to give himself a bigger presence in Cuban life than he has had for the last several years, during which he had taken on the role of a nearly invisible but omnipresent source of critical opinion through his written commentaries. […]

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Wikileaks
July 1, 2010 3 min. read

In October 2008 I attended the International Anti-Corruption Conference. On a bus from the hotel to a reception, I sat next to someone named Julian Assange. At the time, I did not know who he was. He told me he worked for a group called Wikileaks, which was not a wiki but rather a website […]

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Pakistan's Global Political Economy
June 9, 2010 5 min. read

As the recession hit; the jobless rates soared to 10% and more, banks at the brink of failing, stock exchange plummeted, and economy was left paralyzed. All this happened in United States, which sparked a global recession, bringing down Europe and Asia along with it. This global recession was worst on developing nations, as they […]

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Prospects for US-Pak Civilian Nuclear Deal
March 20, 2010 4 min. read

President Asif Ali Zardari, in a meeting with Director of US National Intelligence Dennis C. Blair, urged US to assist Pakistan in its own civilian nuclear technology deal to help overcome its dire energy needs. President had suggested that this kind of deal will not only bridge the trust deficit between the two countries, but […]

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The Rightist Judicio-Politico Mafia
February 15, 2010 6 min. read

Nawaz Sharif present flowers to Justice Khawaja – daylife Saturday February 13 – The Chief Justice of Pakistan defied Presidential orders through a suo moto action against the Presidential notification for appointment of certain judges. Chief Justice, in a rare nightly emergency session, formed a three members bench that suspended two recommendations for judges’ appointment […]

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Reconciliation Is No Silver Bullet
February 11, 2010 7 min. read

Two years ago – February 2008 – Pakistan began its transformation to democracy with a general election that brought Benazir Bhutto’s PPP (Pakistan People’s Party) into power. The party decided to continue its policy, introduced by its slain leader Ms. Bhutto, of reconciliation with all political players. It formed a coalition government with its rival […]

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The Aesthetics of Energy
November 4, 2009 3 min. read

In the past couple days, the New York Times has published two stories about new energy. In one about new controversial gas drilling in Colorado, The Times is pretty clearly against drilling. There is a risk of pollution (there always is an environmental cost in all energy, including green energy). But what upsets The Times […]

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How China Censors Free Speech
May 4, 2009 4 min. read

A recent analysis of China’s media censorship practices deftly analyzes and explains the country’s system of repression and control of the media by using the threat of economically punishment. The piece, published on May 2 in the Far Eastern Economic Review, is aptly titled “China’s Commercialization of Censorship“. The piece not only explains how China […]

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A Chinese Addition to U.S. Media
March 24, 2009 3 min. read

A recent New York Times article explores a quizzical addition to the U.S. media scene: Chinese state-run media. Several, in fact the largest, state-controlled media plan to spend a small fortune in order to expand overseas. In the midst of what looks like a major crisis for journalists and readers,  media companies and outlets left […]

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