AudiencScapes

In November, InterMedia’s Ali Fisher was interviewed by Wilton Park’s
Chief Executive, Richard Burge, as part of the London Conference on
Cyberspace.  Ali was asked to discuss what his research has shown to be
exciting uses of the internet, interesting bits about the growing use of
the internet and what the next big “thing” on the horizon is

The latest political news from Russia has President Dimitry Medvedev
and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin swapping jobs again next year with the
aim of sustaining Putin's personal power structure for perhaps another
dozen years. In principle, Russians could reject this arrangement when
they go to the polls in March 2012 to elect a new president, but it
appears that Putin is still popular enough to get what he wants. As
Russia's political opposition blows in the wind, some social change
advocates look to the internet as a potent grassroots conduit for
movements against monolithic government control.

You don’t usually get this many smart suits at a development conference, but
Indigo Trust‘s The Power of Information: New Technologies for Philanthropy and
Development at trendy Kings Place was seeking to bring together money,
technology and the developing world. …

Paki Masabong is the first chiefdom in Sierra Leone to get access to the internet. The multi-use internet resource center that serves the village may be a model for connecting other rural areas in the country. Bai-Bai Sesay reports...

Despite the government crackdown on Facebook and Twitter, more Chinese citizens than ever are using the internet. Some are using social media to question or criticize the government. Will the pressure from China’s growing population of netizens usher in a new era of transparency or information control?

In the past several years, aid donors and others focused on improving lives in developing countries have been touting social media's ability to empower citizens to foment social change.  Two recent high-profile examples are the “Arab Spring” and popular unrest in China, where social media clearly played roles.  But what about places such as the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) where access to social media remains very limited, if not absent altogether? Caldwell Bishop reports from a recent event on the upcoming elections in Congo............

Democratic India’s rising economy has been perceived as a welcome counterforce to the rise of the neighboring, authoritarian and restrictive regime in China. But recent legislation on internet censorship in India represents one example on a growing list of government actions that increase surveillance of new media and shrink the overall space for dissent within Indian civil society. While the government signaled its willingness to reconsider the new rules on Monday of this week, advocates for internet freedom remain concerned. By Gayatri Murthy, AudienceScapes

India’s growing youth population has an online destination where young people are the reporters, editors and readers. The website’s founder hopes the site will engage youth in improving their country.

Beginning last month, Pakistanis with Internet access can now tune in to a web-based TV channel that highlights the concerns of marginalized citizens. With a focus on recruiting women and youth as reporters, “Maati TV” seeks to offer an alternative to mainstream media outlets. AudienceScapes Fellow Sonya Rehman reports.

Econet’s news that it has linked to the Seacom fiber-optic cable comes on the heels of a related announcement by the government. With fiber-optic connections come hopes of greater speed and reliability for Zimbabwe’s broadband internet services.