digital diplomacy & new tech

Hardly a day goes by where we don’t hear about yet another new podcast. In fact there are tens of thousands of them around the world and on every conceivable topic. While many have thought it was just a fad in that video would totally annihilate the traditional podcast (there are also video podcasts) nothing can be further from the truth. In fact September 30 is International Podcast Day, a day of celebrating the power of podcasts.

The companies say they are acting on this problem. Facebook says it has begun to use artificial intelligence to spot images, videos and text related to terrorism as well as clusters of fake accounts. Meanwhile, Twitter says it suspended 299,649 accounts in the first six months of this year - 75% of these before their first tweet. The companies are now sharing databases of suspicious material, and they have set up the Global Internet Forum to bring together the major players on the issue.

The EU has said it will increase investment in technology and put in place stricter guidelines for its member states to help combat the threat of attacks by hackers and other cyber criminals. [...] The organization said it will use law enforcement and national resources to stop EU countries being attacked.

The Associated Press, in collaboration with LiveU, today announced the launch of AP Live Community, the first live video content and service exchange platform for global newsgathering. [...] Combining AP's global news network with LiveU's technological expertise, the innovative online platform expedites live coverage of breaking news and events in any location by connecting live video publishers and contributors around the world.

It is well known that education is one of the most powerful tools to help people escape from poverty. [...] The problem is that, although governments in sub-Saharan Africa, for example, dedicate on average 18% of their public funds to education, a huge 43% of the region’s population are under the age of 15. This high percentage means that governments are all too often unable to keep up with demand for quality, affordable education.

For a scholar focusing on Australia's public diplomacy, working as a recreational manager in China may never be part of his career path. But Bradley McConachie does have lots to say now about his special experience at a resort in the picturesque tropical coastal city of Sanya in South China's Hainan province.

Ministers in the UK are considering creating an internet ombudsman to deal with complaints about hate crimes and are pressing ahead with proposals for a levy on social media companies to help pay for the policing of online offenses. [...] The idea of an internet ombudsman is already being developed in France and Australia. Each country is creating an agency to act as an independent body that will mediate between members of the public and social media firms.

During their visit to Rostov-on-Don, students from China will communicate with their Russian peers on internet media technologies and together they will produce a video clip on the city landscape, which will be broadcast at the opening ceremony of the 2017 China-Russia Media Forum, following the China-Russia Youth Innovation Union.

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