June 18, 2012 2:16 pm Gulf states crack down on Twitter users By Michael Peel
Gulf states are cracking down on alleged politically and religiously offensive messages on Twitter, in a move that is alarming rights campaigners and highlights the surging regional popularity of the site. Human Rights Watch has condemned the detention of activists in Bahrain and Kuwait, as social media offer a new outlet for criticism in conservative societies where rulers have traditionally enjoyed near-absolute power in exchange for delivering high living standards. The arrests – together with other detentions in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates – show how social websites are expanding Gulf public life in contrasting and sometimes conflicting directions, as nationals traditionally served only by heavily censored media grapple with rapid social change at home and the political turmoil gripping the Middle East. ... http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/1e647122-a8d1-11e1-be59-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1yFohJFlS -- David V. Johnson Web Editor Boston Review Website: http://www.bostonreview.net Twitter: http://twitter.com/BostonReview Tumblr: http://bostonreview.tumblr.com Mailing Address: San Francisco Writers' Grotto 490 2nd Street, 2nd Fl. San Francisco, CA 94107 Cell: (917)903-3706
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