A few weeks ago, while I was visiting a city in northern Mexico, I witnessed some of the drug-related violence people have been experiencing almost every day: several bodies were hung from a bridge and a number of shootouts were reported throughout in the city. As if that was not terrifying enough, I was not able …
Continue reading The New War Correspondents: The Rise of Civic Media Curation in Urban Warfare
In collaboration with the MIT Center for Future Civic Media, Microsoft Research New England is hosting a discussion about the #YoSoy132 activist movement. Open to the public. What: #YoSoy132: Mexico's Networked Social Movement When: Thursday September 20 at 5:00 PM Where: Microsoft Conference Center (Barton Room) located at One Memorial Drive, First Floor, Cambridge, MA …
There has been some excitement about the idea of using technology to address the problems of the Mexican Drug War. As someone involved in technology, I find it inspiring that other techies are trying to do something to end the conflict. However, I also worry when I read ideas based on flawed assumptions. For example, …
Continue reading The Problem with Crowdsourcing Crime Reporting
Today was perhaps the first time a head of state makes reference to an Internet meme in a speech. This is both funny and potentially really interesting. Mexican President Felipe Calderón during a speech given to the national delegation participating in the Panamerican Games made reference to a popular Internet meme known as El Fua. …
Narco Censorship The press is one of the many casualties of Mexico's ongoing violence, in particular, the local media. Newspapers and TV stations are caught in a battle between censorship, control and threats from the drug cartels, and the local governments. In some cities, people often witness shootings, grenade attacks and other violent events, but …
Analysis of yesterday's news coverage of the Mexican massacre Mexican Tweets More than fifty people were murdered yesterday in what is now the most violent episode in the ongoing Mexican Drug War. Most of the victims were women, some were pregnant. After learning about the horrific massacre in Monterrey, I spent several hours reading the …
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