EGYPT

SANEF condemns Egyptian media censorship

The South African National Editors' Forum (SANEF) has condemned Egypt's shutdown of Middle Eastern broadcaster, Al-Jazeera's operations in Cairo and the harassment of its journalists by detaining and then releasing them. SANEF is calling on Egyptian leaders to restore electronic communication and to remove the ban on Al-Jazeera immediately. Read more >>

COTE D'IVOIRE

Two TV reporters arrested as "rebels" in Abidjan

ABIDJAN: Reporters Without Borders has called for the immediate release of two journalists employed by Télévision Notre Patrie (TVNP) - a pirate TV station based in the northern city of Bouaké that supports the former rebel New Force - who were arrested on their arrival in Abidjan late last week. Read more >>

NORTH AFRICA

Attacks on journalists in Yemen, Sudan amid street protests

NEW YORK: Journalists in the Middle East are experiencing increased harassment amid rapidly spreading street protests throughout the region, the Committee to Protect Journalists said on Monday, 31 January 2011. CPJ is gravely concerned about reports of attacks against journalists not only in Egypt, as CPJ has previously reported, but also in Yemen and Sudan. Read more >>

EGYPT

Egypt's last working web provider goes offline

WASHINGTON: Egypt's last working internet service provider, the Noor Group, went down on Monday (31 January 2011), a US web monitoring company said, leaving the country completely offline. Read more >>

EGYPT

Google, Twitter set up voice-to-tweet service for Egypt

[Jeremy Daniel] As the Egyptian government feverishly tries to cut off all contact with the outside world, Google, working in collaboration with Twitter, has set up an innovative service for Egyptians desperate to communicate and stay in touch. It's a service called voice to tweet, and relies on software from a company called SayNow that Google purchased only last week. Read more >>

EGYPT

Egypt's internet shutdown draws fire in US

WASHINGTON: The Egyptian government's unprecedented shutdown of internet access came under fire on Friday (28 January 2011) from the White House, social networking giants and digital rights groups. Read more >>

AFRICA

SMART aids Global Connections, Exchange-Africa

CAPE TOWN: SMART Technologies plans to support Global Connections and Exchange-Africa with the donation of educational technology to schools in South Africa, Uganda and Zambia as well as in the USA. Read more >>

SOUTHERN AFRICA

Loeries Travelling Expo opens in Cape Town

The Loerie Awards Travelling Exhibition will open at CityVarsity in Cape Town on 14 February 2011. The exhibition, sponsored by Adobe, showcases winning work from The 32nd Annual Loerie Awards (2010) in a gallery format. It will stop at educational institutions, expos, museums and public spaces in South Africa, Botswana and Namibia. Read more >>

KENYA

Kenyan media on the spot over slanted coverage

[Carole Kimutai] Kenya Union of Journalists and Allied Workers secretary general Eric Orina has accused the media of slanted news coverage and unprofessionalism. In a letter to media owners and editors, Orina called for objectivity from the media rather than subjectivity. Read more >>

EGYPT

Egypt's central bank to close for third day

CAIRO: The Egyptian Central Bank announced on Monday, 31 January 2011, that it would be closed for a third day on Tuesday amid unrest in the country. Read more >>

UNITED STATES

Marketers head for mobile marketing, greater spending on mobile platforms

NEW YORK, US: The vast majority of client-side marketers - 88% - say they will use mobile marketing in 2011. 75% plan to increase their spending on mobile marketing initiatives by an average of 59% versus 2010, according to a new survey from the ANA (Association of National Advertisers) in partnership with the MMA (Mobile Marketing Association). Read more >>

UNITED STATES

Time to enter 2011 ADC Student Brief Awards

NEW YORK, US: The Art Directors Club (www.adcglobal.org), has opened the call for entries for the 2011 international ADC Student Brief competition, part of the ADC 90th Annual Awards. Read more >>

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Dubai Lynx juries announced

DUBAI, UAE: The 4th Dubai International Advertising Festival, a leading festival and awards for creative advertising and communications in the Middle East and Africa, has announced the 2011 juries. South Africans on the juries are Bridget Johnson, Ogilvy Johannesburg and Richard Hart, Disturbance Design, Durban. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

New car sales up again

[Henrie Geyser: motoring editor] The year got off to a good start with the sales figures for January showing an encouraging growth of 18,6% ahead of the same month last year. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

Smart travel options from Air Mauritius

Today, 2 February 2011, Air Mauritius launches its Travel Smart Program, aimed at enticing more South African visitors to this tropical paradise in the low, cool seasons through value added benefits such as increased luggage allowances, free trips for children and discounts for honeymooners. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

Long Beach Hotel offers opening specials

The brand new Long Beach hotel opens on the east coast of Mauritius on the Belle Mare Peninsula in April 2011 and is offering special deals for anyone who loves luxury a pace or two from the beach. Read more >>

SOUTH AFRICA

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[Ilse van den Berg] One of the biggest highlights on the South African horse-racing, social and fashion calender took place on Saturday, 29 January. The J&B Met celebrated its 34th anniversary this year and took place at Kenilworth Racecourse in Cape Town. It's a well-known fact that this is the one day in the Mother City when you are guaranteed to be blown away by super-spontaneous personalities and stunning designer outfits. Read more >>