The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) [US] joins the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) [UK], Deutsche Welle (DW) [Germany], and France Médias Monde (FMM) [France] to co-sponsor the Bypass Censorship website. International news websites, along with social media and messaging channels used for accessing, sharing and engaging in the free flow of news and information online are routinely blocked by governments in many countries.

Some spokespersons have it tough. Think Sean Spicer trying to defend Donald Trump, Ron Ziegler defending Richard Nixon, maybe Dmitry Peskov fronting for Vladimir Putin. But the kind of tough job facing a spokesman that we should really respect is the one performed for the past three years by Col. Andriy Lysenko, spokesman of the Ukrainian armed forces. He comes daily to the Ukraine Crisis Media Center in downtown Kyiv and reports on-the-record on the state of the war in Ukraine’s eastern regions. 

When Colombia’s newest television series airs this week, it will have many of the hallmarks of a classic telenovela. A handsome stock broker from the big city meets a mysterious and beautiful country girl. When she disappears, he’s left as the prime suspect in a shocking crime. But the biggest twist might be who’s helping finance the project: Uncle Sam. The U.S. Agency for International Development, USAID, put $1 million into the RCN Television series called “No Olvidarás Mi Nombre,” or “Don’t Forget My Name,” which begins airing Tuesday in Colombia.

Indonesia is promoting the annual Bali Arts Festival (PKB) by digitalizing its month-long activities and broadcasting live on particular website as well as in various social media channels. The breakthrough move came at the request of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who wanted to make people across the world know more about the festival, a senior official overseeing the Bali provincial tourism said.

The Foreign Ministry seized the opportunity to highlight the close ties between Morocco and the continent during the celebration of Africa Day on June 8, and lauded the Kingdom’s policies regarding co-development, sharing of expertise and win-win partnerships in Africa. The celebration of Africa Day was organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the theme “Morocco, An Actor for a Collective Emergence in Africa.”

Pakistan’s High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit Saturday said the dialogue between Pakistan and India was the only way to move forward for resolution of long-standing issues as there was always a room for diplomacy. In an interview with an Indian TV Channel WION (World is on news), the high commissioner said as serious issues were involved between the two countries, so how they could be resolved without talking to each other.