News Articles

News articles from this week:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/pope-francis-visits-mosque-in-war-torn-bangui-calling-for-end-to-the-conflict-there/2015/11/30/d31a634a-915f-11e5-befa-99ceebcbb272_story.html

Pope Francis visits the war-torn city of Bangui, in the Central African Republic. What is most interesting about this story is that there is currently a civil war in which both sides justify themselves with their religions. Pope Francis went to a mosque and spread the message that "Muslims and Christians are brothers."


http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/11/30/us-israel-palestinians-eu-idUSKBN0TJ1N020151130#O5R4wziB6H8xrH1b.97

Interesting piece about how the EU wants products from Palestine to be labeled as such, instead of "product of Israel". The Israeli government responded by saying that they could cut off humanitarian funding to the West Bank if this policy takes place. As a consumer I find it very relevant to know who and under what conditions the product I am buying comes from. After all, how I spend my money is one of the major ways that I affect the world around me. Israel fears that people will boycott their products in Europe if this distinction is made, but I'd think that cutting humanitarian funding would be their last resort, not their first.


http://www.miamiherald.com/news/nation-world/article47151700.html

Short AP article about the viral "dancing cop" and how he got fired from his job because he was protesting that his server wrote "blacklivesmatter" on his coffee cup. BlackLivesMatter protesters were going to dance by his new job today.


http://www.theverge.com/2015/11/30/9818502/blackberry-pakistan-ends-service-government

Security and online culture are two things that have become extremely relevant in the last few years. This article talks about how BlackBerry is no longer going to do business in Pakistan because the government is requiring a "backdoor" into their email services. This seems significant but the aritcle also discusses how this could be a P.R. stunt. Pakistan is not a major market for BlackBerry and they have agreed to share information with various other governments.

http://www.eonline.com/news/719761/j-j-abrams-on-having-a-female-lead-in-star-wars-i-want-moms-to-take-their-daughters-to-see-the-force-awakens

To an extent, the media that we consume changes our view on what is normal in the world. In recent years many studies have suggested that women are not portrayed in the same light as men. Their characters are often less deep than their male counterparts and it is still a lot more common to see a male lead. This article discusses how J.J. Abrams is excited that there is a female lead in the new Star Wars and how he hopes that this will be a movie that "mothers take their daughters to."