preserve net freedom

TigerHawk links to a report from the AP about Alaa, the Egyptian blogger I wrote about here. The Sandmonkey is quoted—under his name—and the AP provides a link to his blog, which is great. I’ve recommended it before. Give it a try.

Be forewarned: The writer of this blog is an extremely cynical, snarky, pro-US, secular, libertarian, disgruntled sandmonkey. If this is your cup of tea, please enjoy your stay here. If not, please sod off.

In its report, the AP explains that Alaa’s blog is an aggregator of sorts for 1,000 Egyptian blogs [!].There’s also a very important point about the role of the Internet in societies that live under political repression:

As in other Mideast nations where the press is tightly controlled, middle-class Egyptians have found an outlet on the Internet to spout on politics, culture and daily life — often in the sort of raucous language that newspapers won’t print. Internet cafes have become common.

Interestingly, the Egyptian bloggers see themselves as an alternative not just to their own government-controlled media but also to Al Jazeera and the BBC.

“Instead of opening sites like Al-Jazeera or the BBC, we open Manalaa’s blog to see what’s going on,” said Abdel-Fattah, whose boyfriend, Ahmed El-Droubi, was arrested with Alaa.

Glenn “InstaPundit” Reynolds, who’s written about Alaa, also makes a critical observation [emphasis mine]:

“He’s certainly the most famous blogger in Egypt and arguably the best known reformer there now,” Reynolds told The Associated Press. “When you suppress dissent, even minor voices become incredibly powerful.” ***

Long live the free blogosphere!
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***I was trying to make a related point here, when I talked about how the American MSM misinterpreted the significance of the “heckler” who ruined the Rose Garden meeting between the Chinese president and our beloved leader. By raising her voice in protest, that woman gave hope to all those Chinese who are unable to speak out in their own behalf in China, where the press is controlled by the state.

In an atmosphere of political repression, even one voice that dares to speak the truth has great power. Long live the blogosphere, and Internet freedom.