blogging

Grace, 27, stripper

Sophie — Wed, 28 May 2008 15:47:45 +0200

Grace is 27. She's a stripper in a Texas club. Two years ago, she started a blog about her day-to-day life, telling tales far from the glamorous clichés of porno-chic bars. And she discovered a talent. Her writing is polished and to the point. Sometimes sad, but not always. She tells her story to the Observers.

What better than to spy on the guards that spy on you

Julien — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 15:01:14 +0100

Hu Jia films his jailers passing the time with a game of cards

Last month we publicised the case of blogger Hu Jia, arrested at his home on 27 December for openly criticising the organisation of the Olympic Games. Here we publish an extract from the documentary ‘Prisoners in Freedom City', that he and his wife Jeng filmed in the year before his arrest. This is the direct testimony of a Chinese dissident under 24h supervision by secret police.

Killed for filming police brutality on his mobile

Julien — Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:52:26 +0100

When Wei Wenhu saw police forces beating up protesting villagers in Tianmen (central China), he took out his mobile and filmed the scene. But when he was spotted and tried to run away, he found himself being chased by around 20 police officers.

He cried that he would delete the photos and even give the policemen his phone. But it didn't make any difference. Wenhu was brutally beaten and succumbed to his injuries in hospital the same day, 7 January. The incident has outraged bloggers, whose online respects to this ‘citizen journalist' increase daily. Under pressure, the authorities have decided to undertake an investigation into the blunder, and have even fired the head of the city's police force.

In a country where the media is largely government controlled and heavily censored, images of police brutality usually find their way into the public eye on the internet. Here, some of those videos that the authorities would rather they didn't find their way out.

The American elections viewed from abroad

Julien — Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:48:12 +0100

The U.S elections are followed from every corner of the world. From Colombia to Iran and Gibraltar, our Observers wonder who would make the best ‘president of the world'.