In a small, dingy and humid room in Metiabruz, a poor Muslim-dominated locality in Kolkata in eastern India, at least 20 Muslim women are talking with excitement about their aspirations and why they decided to study information technology (IT), a short-term course offered for a minimal fee by a non- government organisation operating in their locality.

What do the protests in Burma, bombings in Jakarta, the recent earthquake in Haiti and the massive devastation left by typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines have in common?

Tired of being sidelined in the job market because he was over 40, an Argentine computer specialist created a labour exchange for people his age and older, which in just a few months grew to nearly 6,000 people.

KOLKATA, India, June 17 (IPS) - In a small, dingy and humid room in Metiabruz, a poor Muslim-dominated locality in Kolkata in eastern India, at least 20 Muslim women are talking with excitement about their aspirations and why they decided to study information technology (IT), a short-term course offered for a minimal fee by a non- government organisation operating in their locality.

MANILA, June 16 (IPS) - What do the protests in Burma, bombings in Jakarta, the recent earthquake in Haiti and the massive devastation left by typhoon Ketsana in the Philippines have in common?

BUENOS AIRES, Jun 14 (IPS) - Tired of being sidelined in the job market because he was over 40, an Argentine computer specialist created a labour exchange for people his age and older, which in just a few months grew to nearly 6,000 people.

MEXICO CITY, Jun 10 (IPS) - The Mexican government and capital city authorities are making the most of the national football team's participation in the FIFA World Cup beginning Friday in South Africa, by using the sport's power to distract public attention away from the economic crisis and the violent battle against drug trafficking.

HAVANA, Jun 8 (IPS) - There are blogs made in Cuba, and many more Cubans living abroad who blog, both in favour of or against the Cuban government. Caught up in the sea of political passions, the hundreds of blogs about this socialist island nation reflect a growing variety of viewpoints and realities.

RAMALLAH, Jun 7 (IPS) - Although Israel successfully controlled news of its deadly commando raid on the Free Gaza (FG) flotilla during the first crucial 48 hours of media coverage, emerging evidence from witnesses and survivors is challenging the Israeli government's version of events.

BANGKOK, June 6 (IPS/Asia Media Forum) - Resentment here toward the foreign media had been simmering in the wake of the Thai government’s crackdown against protesters in May, but it nearly came to a boil when Thai panelists aired their frustrations recently about what they called western bias, misunderstandings of the Thai political culture and reporting that tried to fit events into a bad-versus-evil contest.

SAKHNIN, Israel, Jun 3 (IPS) - Normally, in this non-descript sleepy Arab town in Galilee, TV sets are tuned to Al-Jazeera or Al-Arabiyya, the round-the-clock Arabic networks.

KARACHI, Pakistan, May 31 (IPS) - The continuing debate on the purported audiotape implicating Pakistani television anchor Hamid Mir, popular and controversial in equal measure, has raised serious concerns about the media amid calls for an impartial investigation to uncover the truth behind the recording.

BEIJING, May 31 (IPS) - Last June, when thousands of Iranians – many organised through social networking websites such as Twitter – took to the streets to protest the outcome of the country’s presidential election, a Chinese English-language newspaper, ‘Global Times’, published an editorial critical of the Western media’s coverage of the protests.

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 30 (IPS) - Incorporating young people into the task of fostering understanding between people of various cultural and religious backgrounds is one of the four priority areas of the Alliance of Civilisations.

KARACHI, Pakistan, May 30 (IPS/Asia Media Forum) - While there was no question that the visual depictions of the Prophet Mohammad on Facebook hit a raw nerve among devout Muslims all over the world, the debate here in Pakistan has been all about whether the government should be the one making choices for its Internet users.

BANGKOK, May 29 (IPS/Asia Media Forum) - After months of turmoil, silence – albeit an uneasy one – has finally fallen over the streets of Bangkok. But the shouting continues in cyberspace as Thais and even foreign residents bicker and debate over what this South-east Asian country has just experienced, as well as about the challenges it continues to face.

BANGKOK, May 20 (IPS/Asia Media Forum) - As big a story as this week’s crackdown on anti-government protests in Thailand is the significant number of journalists killed or hurt, and media professionals and organisations threatened during the country’s most serious political conflict in years.

GAZA CITY, May 19 (IPS) - "I've learned most of what I know about photo editing and graphic design via the Internet," says Emad, 27-year-old film-maker and editor. In Gaza, this sort of thing has become usual in a different way.

MEXICO CITY, May 17 (IPS) - Horacio Ramos is not bothered about paying an extra 50 dollars on his television subscription so that he can watch the entire FIFA World Cup, which kicks off Jun. 11 in South Africa.

BANGKOK, May 15 (IPS/Asia Media Forum) - Two months into Thailand’s anti-government protests and as an army-led blockade is underway to end them, the media are struggling with challenges to their credibility and perceptions of bias in the South-east Asian country’s gravest political stalemate in years.