This unexpected reaction from an Iraqi journalist is now getting more hits on YouTube. Iraqi journalist Muntazer al-Zaidi from Al-Baghdadia television network threw his shoes at President George W. Bush during a press conference in Baghdad on December 14, 2008.
Reports indicated that Bush later laughed off the incident.
By Marjorie Gorospe
INQUIRER.net
SOCIAL networking websites are now venues for people to widen their connections and to reconnect with friends. For some, social networks can help build self-esteem and even make extroverts out of introverts through pictures and blogs.
Social networks have given us the freedom to create our own network of friends. We can create our own profiles, post pictures and connect with friends that have been away or are elsewhere.
I am one of millions of people worldwide who enjoy the freedom given by social networks. During my college years, Friendster has been my way of updating friends about me. For the passed four years, I enjoyed using it until I found that there were three other false accounts in Friendster using my name.
By Marjorie Gorospe
Director Mae Paner, the person behind an inspiring interpretation of national anthem “Lupang Hinirang,” has come up with another video. This time it’s about the cha-cha.
Taking on the character “Juana,” Paner plays two characters. One is a dance instructor showing the right steps to doing a cha-cha.
The other is a character showing the steps to a different cha-cha, which is a shorter description of charter change.
Instead of showing the right moves, Juana’s alter ego describes how “cha-cha” is done.
Just like the dance, the political cha-cha follows right timing — knowing when to lie-low as public unrest emerges and when to revive the cha-cha to cover up scandals.
In an earlier interview with Paner, she mentioned about upcoming projects of the “convergence team.”
She said that “Juana Change: CHA-CHA” is actually a result of people’s reaction to the Lupang Hinirang video, which is also up on YouTube.
As the video ends, Paner delivers this statement, which is her take on the current state of the Philippines: “Ang mga taong bayan ngayon, mga tanga.. ang mga magagaling nagsipag-abroad na. Ang mga natira na lang dito iyong mga walang magawang sumasali na lang sa Wowowee, tumataya sa Lotto o naghihintay ng remittance abroad [The citizenry are becoming foolish. The smart ones have gone abroad. Those left are often seen joining Wowowee, betting on Lotto and waiting for remittances from abroad].This country deserves people like me.” She then snorts, as if saying that the country has gone to the pigs.
By Glenn Chapman
Agence France-Presse
SAN FRANCISCO — Google and Facebook on Thursday launched rival technology platforms that can be used to infuse websites with trendy social-networking features.
A Facebook Connect service that was tested for months with selected partners is now available to anyone interested in transforming static websites into interactive communities of users.
Internet colossus Google picked the same day to unveil a beta, or test, version of Friend Connect software aimed at “any webmaster looking to add a dash of social to his or her site.”
Online communities and user-contributed content are core aspects of the evolution of life on the Internet and the superstar California companies are evidently jockeying to be the preferred platform for websites.
By Izah Morales
She’s 57 years old and is blogging for two years now.
“I’m not embarrassed to say my age because it proves that I’m still kicking and blogging,” says Marianita Girlie Villariba, educator, feminist and psychologist at the Education for Life Foundation.
Yes, Villariba is not your ordinary golden-aged woman who is afraid of technology and would rather stick with what is conventional.
“Parang may kulang sa araw ko ‘pag hindi ako nakapag-blog or nakapagbasa ng mga blogs [When I have not blogged for a day or have read others’ blogs, I feel that something’s lacking],” says Villariba.
Blogging has indeed become part of her daily routine aside from reading newspapers and magazines.
Her conversation with a friend who is into the study of babaylan or priestess led her to blogging.
By Izah Morales
INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines – For the past few days, subscribers to the online social network Friendster were complaining about having unknown people in their friends’ list.
It happened right after the website announced that it was undergoing maintenance.
In a recent blog entry, Friendster explained that the power outage in their outsourced data center in Santa Clara, California caused the downtime.
Friendster said its servers are located in Santa Clara, California along with other 50 companies.
Friendster said it was not the only company that experienced the unscheduled downtime.
By Agence France-Presse
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysia’s leading blogger, Raja Petra Kamaruddin, was Friday released from detention under controversial internal security laws after a court ruled the government had no right to hold him.
Raja Petra, a vocal government critic who had been held at a notorious detention camp since September, wept and embraced his family after being freed by the Shah Alam High Court.
“I’m realy glad it’s over. I’m really tired. The judge’s decision proves that there was no justification for my detention,” he said, calling for an end to the Internal Security Act (ISA) which allows for detention without trial.
“We have to fight all-out and get the ISA abolished,” he told reporters.
Looking haggard and dressed in a brown T-shirt and jeans, Raja Petra was garlanded by dozens of supporters outside the court before stepping into a maroon Rolls Royce provided by a supporter to ferry him home.
I AM just wondering if there is a possibility that our legislative body can enact appropriate regulations or laws perhaps to put a stop to all bullying going around the Internet. As of now, negative blogs and comments are spreading around the net through various sites. Decent beings are disturbed and many innocent souls are put to shame. Reputations are put to risk. I learned that in some parts of the globe, Internet bullying is a criminal act. In South Korea, identities of people who post comments and the like are required to be disclosed, their contact numbers need even to be placed in the Internet for easy identification in event that someone wants to sue for libel or one infringes on privacy. In the US, teenage suicide linked to Internet bullying is becoming out of control. We do not want this to happen to our youngsters, and even to adults who cannot stand the pressure of being intimidated. I don’t know if Internet bullying is already incorporated in our Electronic Commerce Act already but if it is, well and good, let us put it into operation.
Cindy Hisona, Banga, Bayawan City via e-mail
By Anna Valmero
INQUIRER.net
PARAÑAQUE City, Philippines — Blogs are also business tools, according to some Filipino bloggers.
Apart from being personal diaries, blogs are increasingly becoming sources of income for some bloggers.
Janette Toral, blogger and author of DigitalFilipino.com E-Commerce Workshop E-Book, says some Filipino bloggers have turned their blogs to effective tools for advertising.
Combining e-commerce and blogging, for instance, allows people to earn some income while doing what they are passionate about: blogging.
But before turning a blog into something income-generating, she says it is important to maintain a consistent following. Content remains king in blogs.
Alexander Villafania
INQUIRER.net
“Maligayang pagdating sa Tagalog na Facebook.”
The extremely popular social networking site Facebook has switched on its Tagalog version catering to the site’s growing Filipino user base.
The Tagalog version effectively expands Facebook’s language options to 34 (seven are still in beta phase).
Most of the services and options in the Tagalog version of Facebook are translated into the vernacular, with only a few exceptions. The Home, Inbox and Profile tabs remain in English and all English messages and posts sent by users’ friends’ list will not be translated.
Many Filipino uses have already started using the Tagalog version of Facebook, sending messages to other users in Tagalog, as well as posting on Walls and Pokes.
One example: “Ano ginagawa mo ngayon? roughly translates “What are you doing?” — a question posed by Facebook which users can fill in with short messages.
Facebook is also encouraging Filipino users to invite others to use the Tagalog version.
Facebook is one of the fastest growing social networking sites worldwide. It currently has over 110 million users who are utilizing about 24,000 applications, many of which are developed and contributed by users.
