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Sources HotLink

August 12, 2015

Welcome to this week's issue of Sources Hotlink. This issue features articles that are centred around the theme of the big overpowering the small; through physical violence, deception, law and slander. Those who are powerful have always exerted their strength to control the thoughts and behaviours of the weak. In the past, it was straightforward -- through force. In modern times, however, this control is much less obvious.

For our marketers and public relations specialists, we offer guides in internet marketing: one article on the current state of internet communications and another article on search engine optimization. Also included in this issue is a film about corporate abuse of power and a book on news stories that stand the test of time.

Sources has been connecting journalists with newsmakers since 1977. To find experts, spokespersons, and story ideas on thousands of topics, please browse the Subject Index or use the Search. For help in reaching the media and the public with your story and your views, use Sources’ media relations tools.To become a member, use this form.

You're invited to contribute to this newsletter. If you know of news or resources you'd like to share, please get in touch via mailroom@sources.com or 416-964-5735. We hope this issue interests and informs you. Please feel free to contact us with any suggestions on what you'd like to see in this newsletter. This issue of The Sources HotLink is available on the Sources website. We'll also be posting content from it on the Sources Facebook page, And you can follow us on Twitter. If you'd rather not receive this newsletter, click Unsubscribe. If you'd like to have it sent to a different email address, use this link to Subscribe.

Media and Journalism news and analysis

Featured Articles on Sources.com

The Biggest Threat to Mexican Journalists Aren't Drug Cartels Anymore

Northern Mexico and the drug cartels have dangerous reputations; especially for journalists. This should come to a surprise to no one. This year, however, the danger seems to have shifted in both location and source. Of the six journalists that were killed in Mexico this year, all of them were killed in the south; most likely at the hands of police officers and politicians. Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Freedom of Expression -
Impunity

How Iran Used WikiLeaks to Attack a Human Rights Defender

In their latest attempt to discredit “terrorist” human rights defenders, Iran has accused and slandered Ahmed Shaheed, Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Iran, of accepting bribes. Though the issue has been resolved, Iran’s crusade against human rights activists neither began nor ended with Shaheed and Shaheed isn’t the biggest fish they are frying -- not by a long shot. Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Free Speech -
Human Rights

Leaders Who Publicly Threaten Journalists

As a state leader, public criticism is inevitable. How you deal with it, however, is entirely up to you. When journalists put leaders in a negative light, they can choose to correct their mistakes or the can choose to respond with violence and repression. They can also react emotionally with insults, defamation and racism. This is the state of global leaders who, instead of permitting the freedom of speech, decide to slander journalists who were just doing their job. Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Freedom of the Press -
Freedom of Expression

How China's Online Civilization Army Turned a Youth Street Fight into a Patriotic Struggle

A bystander would tell you that it was just a fight between two teens but, watching the news from home, you’d think it was a patriot defending his country. This is a story about a propaganda campaign that turned into a fist fight which was subsequently manipulated into a more effective propaganda campaign. If there’s a story to be spun, China will be there to spin it. Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Propaganda

Recent News Releases

Reporters Without Borders solidary with journalists from netzpolitik.org

August 9th – Reporters Without Borders is shocked that the German Public Prosecutor General is currently considering treason charges ("Landesverrat") against two German journalists who run the blog netzpolitik.org. It is the first time in more than 50 years that this has happened in Germany. As an organization which fights for freedom of information around the world, Reporters Without Borders is disappointed that the Prosecutors’ office doesn’t hesitate to damage Germany’s reputation of being a safe place for journalists. Read more


Privacy Badger 1.0 Blocks the Sneakiest Kinds of Online Tracking

August 9th – "It’s likely you are being tracked by advertisers and other third parties online. You can see some of it when it’s happening, such as ads that follow you around the Web that seem to reflect your past browsing history," said EFF Staff Technologist Cooper Quintin, lead developer of Privacy Badger. "Those echoes from your past mean you are being tracked, and the records of your online activity are distributed to other third parties - all without your knowledge, control, or consent. But Privacy Badger 1.0 will spot many of the trackers following you without your permission, and will block them or screen out the cookies that do their dirty work." Read more


Fourth blogger on radical Islamist hit-list hacked to death

August 9th – Reporters Without Borders is appalled to learn that Niloy Neel, a secularist blogger and activist who had been threatened by Islamist militants, was hacked to death today in his Dhaka home by five intruders armed with machetes. He is the fourth blogger to be murdered in Bangladesh since the start of the year. Read more


New Street-Level Surveillance Project Tracks Spying Technologies Used by Local Law Enforcement

August 9th – Responding to a troubling rise in law enforcement’s use of high-tech surveillance devices that are often hidden from the communities where they’re used, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) today launched the Street-Level Surveillance Project (SLS), a Web portal loaded with comprehensive, easy-to-access information on police spying tools like license plate readers, biometric collection devices, and "Stingrays.’" Read more

Getting Publicity: Connecting journalists and news makers

SEO and Press Releases

Every modern marketer has become familiar with the letters SEO but not everyone may know what it stands for let alone how to utilize it. Search Engine Optimization is one of the most important concepts to consider when you are trying to get your message out. When was the last time you looked at page 2 of a Google search? Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Search Engine Optimization -
Digital Marketing

Mobile Friendly Design— Does it Really Matter?

The times are changing. With the advancement of mobile technology, marketers not only have worry about how many people visit their website but also with what device. An effective internet marketing campaign relies on consumers feeling comfortable with your website. As more and more people begin to browse the internet on their smartphones, it’s become imperative that websites become mobile-friendly. Read more

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Internet Marketing -
Mobile Media

Topic of the Week: Human Rights

The right to own property, the right to speak freely, freedom from slavery, the right of education; what do these things have in common? Morally, these are things that we feel that every human deserves by right. Legally, they are. Unfortunately, many people in this world can’t even comprehend these concepts. The state of human rights is better than it ever was before, but we, as a species, have a long way to go. Read more

Website of the Week: Electronic Frontier Foundation

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is the leading nonprofit organization defending civil liberties in the digital world. Founded in 1990, EFF champions user privacy, free expression, and innovation through impact litigation, policy analysis, grassroots activism, and technology development. They work to ensure that rights and freedoms are enhanced and protected as our use of technology grows. Read More

Related Subjects on the Sources Subjects Index
Human Rights Violations - Free Speech

Film of the Week: Big Boys Gone Bananas!*

A film about a film. The documentary BANANAS!* criticized the businesses practices of Dole which later instigated a lawsuit. In response, Dole used aggressive media and public relations campaigns to suppress the film and discredit the filmmakers. This is a story about swedish filmmaker Fredrik Gertten and the financial and political influence of corporate machines. Read More

Related Subjects in the Sources Subjects Index
Corporate Ethics -
Censorship

Book of the Week: Daily News, Eternal Stories: The Mythical Role of Journalism

There is a tendency to see the news strictly in terms of facts. The five Ws, argues Jack Lule, ought to make room for a sixth: What makes it a story? In Daily News, Eternal Stories, Lule undertakes a series of case studies in order to explain how news is given relevance or, in some cases, unfairly shaped by myth, the "eternal stories" that predate the printed word. Read More

Related Subjects in the Sources Subject Index
Journalism

Quote of the Week

Sources Calendar

Out on Screen

The 21st Annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival features 71 films over 11 days in August. Major themes explored in the films include queer youth, queer history, the queer Asian experience and queer champions of hope. This year's Focus on Youth includes 22 films classified for youth under age 18 years, as well as the youth-gala party NO HATE!

Date: Aug 13/2009 to Aug 23/2009
Location: Vancouver, BC
Website: http://outonscreen.com


International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition

The United Nations' (UN) International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition is annually observed on August 23 to remind people of the tragedy of the transatlantic slave trade. It gives people a chance to think about the historic causes, the methods and the consequences of slave trade.

Date: Aug 23/2015
Website: http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/events/prizes-and-celebrations/celebrations/inter

International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances

Enforced disappearance has become a global problem and is not restricted to a specific region of the world. Once largely the product of military dictatorships, enforced disappearances can nowadays be perpetrated in complex situations of internal conflict, especially as a means of political repression of opponents. Of particular concern are:

-->the ongoing harassment of human rights defenders, relatives of victims, witnesses and legal counsel dealing with cases of enforced disappearance;
-->the use by States of counter-terrorist activities as an excuse for breaching their obligations;
-->the still widespread impunity for enforced disappearance.

Date: Aug 30/2015
Website: http://www.un.org/en/events/disappearancesday/


Parliamentary Names & Numbers

Parliamentary Names & Numbers gives you instant access to up-to-date contact information for Members of Parliament, Senators, Provincial & Territorial Legislators, Federal & Provincial Ministries, Ministerial, Caucus & Critic Responsibilities and Federal Agencies & Crown Corporations

This handy guide to the complete Canadian political scene is yours for only $75.00/yr + GST/HST. Subscriptions include online access to Parliamentary Names & Numbers for one year (January 1 to December 31, or July 1 to June 30.) Subscribe online or call 416-964-5735.

Media Names & Numbers

Media Names & Numbers is the one-stop print- and Web-based directory of Canada's media, with listings for all print and broadcast media. You can access information for more than 6,000 publications and stations, with essential contact details including names of editors and producers, phone and fax numbers, mailing addresses, E-mails, Web sites, and information about editorial scope, circulation and audience size, languages, subscription prices, and much more.

Your subscription includes access to the online version of Media Names & Numbers. Now you can get all this for only $109.95 +GST/HST. ( online subscription January 1 to December 31).Subscribe online or call 416-964-5735.

How can Sources help you get media coverage?

At Sources, we’ve been helping organizations, companies, institutions, and individuals get media attention for over 35 years.How? By providing journalists with great sources and story ideas – for TV, radio, print and online.

When you are in Sources the media know you are a source they can call. When you are in Sources, you ensure that the media will find you when they do stories about your areas of expertise. Positive media coverage is the most credible form of publicity there is. Unlike paid advertising and other forms of marketing, media coverage is earned and grows directly out of what you do and what you know. It spotlights your successes and establishes your brand. Media coverage is the most cost-effective form of marketing, because a single news story or TV spot about you can reach tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people.

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Staff: Michael Poon, Ulli Diemer

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