2010-02-05
Hurry up, the clock is ticking!
The nomination phase for the 6th BOBs Awards finishes on February 14th.
That's the final deadline for suggesting your blog, podcast or videoblog for the competition. Don't forget you can also nominate your favourite blogs from our Blogopedia by simply going to the blog's 'details' page and clicking on the relevant category.
New for 2010: the BOBs are now accepting nominations in Bengali. There's also a new 'Special Topic: Climate Change' award. Blogs AND podcasts are eligible for this one, so keep your eyes peeled for anything that fits the bill.
The jury kicks into action on February 15th. For each of the 17 categories, the jury members will make a shortlist of 11 entries. The BOBs winners will be announced at the re:publica internet conference on April 15th 2010.
Just a few more days to go: keep those nominations coming!
2009-12-04
The 6th Deutsche Welle Blog Awards is now officially OPEN!
The BOBs are back!
It's that time again: we're asking for your help in our quest to find the world's best weblogs.
Have a look at our blogopedia. Is your blog there? If not, you need to submit it. Once you've done that, you're all set to nominate it for this year's BOBs Awards.
You can make your nominations right up until 14. February 2010. Weblogs, Podcasts und Videoblogs from all over the world are eligible. The language categories are Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, German, English, French, Indonesian, Persian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish.
Take a look at our road map for more details.
What's new?
This year the BOBs team are pleased to announce the addition of a new BOBs language category for Bengali. We've also got a new "Special Topic Award" for blogs and podcasts dealing with the issue of climate change.
Announcing the winners at re:publica
The BOBs jury will announce the winners at the re:publica10 internet conference in April 2010.
2009-11-27
UK jails schizophrenic for refusal to decrypt files
Under a law that came into force in 2007, the UK government has the right to jail people for refusing to comply with police requests to supply encryption keys or to make target data intelligible.
The UK government claims that the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act III is a crucial step in the fight against terrorism. Critics fear that it could represent a serious infringement on human rights.
This week The Register has revealed that the first person to be jailed under the legislation is a schizophrenic science hobbyist with no previous criminal record.
When asked why he refused to comply with police demands, the man (who remains anonymous), said:
“The principle - simple as that.
2009-11-23
Azerbaijan to loose crucial freedom of expression support
Up until now, The International Republican Institute (IRI), a US-based NGO that aims to advance democracy worldwide, has played a massive role in the opening up of Azerbaijan's blogosphere.
That, it seems, is set to change. The United Stated Agency for International Development has announced that it will not be extending the IRI's contract in the area. According to the US Embassy in Baku, the IRI failed to submit a bid to stay:
“USAID has just completed its periodic review of programs and asked for new proposals. In that internal process, both NDI and IFES submitted proposals and they will continue to collaborate with the Embassy. IRI did not take part, and, as a result, will cease operations in Azerbaijan"
Some bloggers, however, are disputing the claim that the IRI failed to submit proposals for the coming year. Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines, which was set up with the encouragement of the IRI's Country Director, Jake Jones, has this to say:
“There seems to be a general misunderstanding that IRI didn't make any proposals for its next year activities in the country. It is NOT true, IRI DID propose. In fact there are local partners who can SUPPORT and JUSTIFY for this.”
Flying Carpets and Broken Pipelines suspects that the real reason for the IRI's with drawl is cost-cutting. Several other blogs are raising similar suspicions.
2009-11-23
UK: Web democracy in the count-down to Copenhagen
In the UK, a new collaborative manifesto could be demonstrating Web democracy in action.
The UK’s Department of Energy and Climate Change has teamed up with the National Union of Students to produce a collaborative manifesto on climate change.
The manifesto is a living document made using an online web-tool called mixedink.
Mixedink allows contributors to create their own manifestos by mixing and matching text taken from existing entries, or by writing their own manifestos from scratch if they prefer. Throughout the process, contributors are able to edit and rate other people’s manifestos.
The document with the highest rating is taken to represent the community’s collective viewpoint.
Ed Miliband, the UK’s climate change minister, will take the final document with him when he goes to the international climate change summit in Copenhagen next month.
2009-08-13
Deutsche Welle Blog Awards at re:publica 2010
The BOBs start on Dec. 7
Bloggers from around the world have been waiting for the sixth annual Deutsche Welle Blog Awards to begin, but the waiting will have to continue for just a little bit longer.
The contest's start has been switched from its usual date in late August to Dec. 7. That's when anyone and everyone will be able to suggest their favorite blogs, podcasts and videoblogs for the competition.
To promote communication among bloggers and among the globe's many blogospheres, all the winners of the world's most international blog award will be announced next year at the re:publica'10 blog and social media conference on April 15 in Berlin.
The re:publica'10 conference focuses on blogs, social media and digital society and is holding its fourth annual meeting in the German capital from April 14-16. Last year over 1,600 people attended Germany's largest internet conference.
In 2009, the BOBs were delighted to be able to invite all the contest's winners to an international award ceremony at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum. In order to continue promoting the exchange of ideas among bloggers and other media professionals, we've decided to do the same in 2010.The ceremony will take place in June in Bonn, Germany. We look forward to seeing you there!
2009-04-23
The BOBs take the Stage at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum
Bloggers join in the discussion
BOBs Awards Ceremony and Panel "Citizen Journalism & Freedom of Speech" to take place at the second annual Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum in Bonn, June 3-5.
This year's motto is: Conflict prevention in the multimedia age. The second Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum will primarily highlight the rapid technological development in the world of media and debate the ensuing questions related to modified usage. The conference will examine the future of content delivery, especially topics pertaining to peace and security. More than 50 panels and workshops have been lined up so far.
One panel, called "Citizen Journalism & Freedom of Speech", will be held by past winners of the BOBs. Learn more about the panel here.
An Awards Ceremony for the winners of the BOBs 2008 will also take place at the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum on June 4. Most of the winners will be flying in from all corners of the world to come and accept their prize. We cannot wait to meet these amazing bloggers.
And be sure to check out an overview of all the topics to be discussed.
High-profile speakers include Howard Rheingold from Stanford University, as well as the multimedia producer, author and journalist Brian Storm and African Union Peace and Security Commissioner Ramtane Lamamra.
You can register online on the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum website.
2008-11-28
The 2008 BOBs Winners Have Been Decided!
Generación Y Wins Best Blog of 2008
The jury for the Deutsche Welle International Weblog Awards -- The BOBs -- has announced the winners in all 16 of the competition's categories.
Of the 11 finalists in the Best Blog category, Generación Y, a Cuban blog written by Yoani Sanchez, claimed the Jury Prize for Best Blog.
The jury said that Sanchez gives voice to an entire generation of Cubans and provides the world with a window into Cuba through her clear and poetic writing.
In addition to a slew of other obstacles in her way, Sanchez can't even post her own entries to the blog. Instead she is forced to e-mail them to friends outside of Cuba in order for her words to go online. Despite the challenges she has to overcome, she's managed to keep in contact with her readers and create a huge international community around her work.
For the Reporters Without Borders award, the jury decided to honor two blogs. One went to Zeng Jinyan, the wife of an imprisoned Chinese human rights activist Hu Jia, and 4equality, a Persian blog that fights for women's rights in Iran.
Placed under house arrest, Zeng Jinyan's blog describes life under constant surveillance by the Chinese authorities. The Persian blog 4equality is working to gather one million signatures on a petition for increased women's rights in Iran.
Here are all the Jury Prize winners for the BOBs 2008.
Congratulations to the winners and to all the blogs who were nominated. And thanks also to all of you who participated in the online voting, making this year's BOBs the most successful ever!
Cheers,
The BOBs Team
2008-11-27
Live Blog and Video on Demand
