The Man Reporting on Africa’s Most Secretive State
There is no independent media in Eritrea, a country that ranks near the very bottom of press freedom indexes. But one man is trying to change his country’s repressive system. “J” is the editor of Eritrean Press, a Facebook page which is a mix of political reporting, satire, sport, and light features.
It’s an almost unique development aimed at Eritrean readers both inside the country – where only around 1% of the population is able to access the internet – and the wider diaspora around the world.
In his first-ever interview, the editor of Eritrean Press talks about what it’s like to run a news outlet from outside the country, and how a peace agreement caused his page’s stance to shift - from broad support of government foreign policy to a sharply critical line on President Isaias Afwerki’s regime.
Reporters: Reha Kansara and Mike Wendling
Producers: Reha Kansara and Ed Main
(Photo Caption: The Eritrean Press logo with a silhouette of man talking into a microphone / Photo Credit: BBC/Eritrean Press)
How the far right hijacked a murder
After 14-year-old Keira Gross was murdered in Berlin, the far right pounced. They spread rumours and misinformation online, blaming the crime on a Muslim immigrant from Chechnya who they dubbed “The Beast of the Caucasus”. One key activist, Lutz Bachmann of the anti-Islam group Pegida, even identified a boy who he said was the murderer, and posted his details with a link to his Facebook profile.
However, there was a problem: the rumours were wrong. It emerged that Keira was not murdered by a Muslim immigrant, but rather by a churchgoing German classmate who was obsessed with Batman’s nemesis, the Joker.
We hear from Keira’s mother about the impact the rumours have had on her life, and find out how extremists twist reports of crime to serve their political goals.
Presenter: Mike Wendling
Reporter: Ant Adeane
(Photo: Keira Gross. Credit: Karin Gross)
Meet the Lawyer Fighting 'Revenge Porn'
Carrie Goldberg’s life changed when an ex-boyfriend threatened to post naked pictures and videos of her online. She was already practicing as a lawyer, but quit her job to start her own firm and give her clients - as she puts it - “the lawyer I needed when I was going through hell.”
When she began in 2014, there were few laws against what is now known as “revenge porn” – the non-consensual sharing of explicit photos online. Now many countries and US states have passed anti-revenge porn laws. Movements like #MeToo have also focused attention on sexual consent and harassment.
Carrie Goldberg tells BBC Trending how she has won legal victories for her clients. And she explains why social media and dating apps are both part of the solution and part of the problem.
Presenter: Mike Wendling
Producer: Anisa Subedar
(Photo: Carrie Goldberg in her New York office / Credit: BBC Copyright)
Lessons from an Instagram Star’s Failed Tour
Caroline Calloway built a huge audience on Instagram by posting fairy tale pictures of life as a university student in England, mixing romance and adventure with a dash of personal revelation and grit. But she recently found herself on the receiving end of a wave of abuse after she cancelled a tour of “creativity workshops”. It’s prompted a discussion about influencers – social media stars who have a lot of cultural clout and can often make a lot of money. But what happens when they let down their fans?
Reporter: Anisa Subedar
Presenter: Mike Wendling
(Photo: Caroline Calloway. Credit: Instagram/Caroline Calloway)
How an Online Video Shut Down a Multimillion Dollar Experiment
In June 2017 more than 70 children arrived at a university campus in Indiana, US. They were there to take part in a nutrition study that examined the effects of diet and sodium reduction on blood pressure and cholesterol in adolescents. But the experiment swiftly came to a halt when a video was posted online of what was going on at the Camp. As a result, the multi-million dollar nutrition study was terminated.
We travel to the US to speak to the children who participated in the study, their parents, and a camp manager.
Reporter: Camila Ruz
Producer: Ant Adeane
(Photo: Purdue University Student Dormitory Building. Credit: Getty Images)