A new generation of feminists are reclaiming porn, both as consumers and producers. A (very) intimate journey The first time I remember thinking critically about pornography, I was 15. It was the early 1990s, and my friend and I were going through a stack of discarded magazines, undertaking the well-loved teenage art of collage. Between […] More »

I first stumbled across BOSCO-Uganda in July 2008. I was nearing the end of my internship with the Women of Uganda Network and was becoming increasingly interested in what is being called information and communication technology for development or ICT4D. BOSCO-Uganda introduced me to the idea of using basic technology developed in the Western world […] More »

Nadya Kwandibens stepped off a Greyhound bus from Phoenix, Arizona, in Kenora, Ontario, in November 2006 with only her camera and her computer. During the two-and-a-half-day trip, her suitcase, containing all her belongings, had been misplaced at a transfer point in Omaha. She lost her clothing, her native powwow jingle dress, and sacred ceremonial items, […] More »

For day two of what we’ve dubbed “Legalization Week” here, Jordan Heath Rawlings writes about a plan from the Songwriters Association of Canada that would throw open the file-sharing doors to every Canadian and find new ways to help musicians make a living from their creativity. It’s just one of many proposals that have been […] More »

Music is a dead industry walking. A radical all-you-can-eat plan promises unlimited tunes and puts artists — not record companies — first Politically speaking, it was a pretty good haul of booty. On June 7, an organization of self-described “pirates” took what was a fairly small step toward gaining real political clout, but a gigantic […] More »

Local columnists didn’t have much to worry about before the internet. Maybe a few dirty looks while waiting for a morning coffee, or in the grocery store after,  but by the next day all would be forgotten. A new column would hit the ink and everyone would get over it. Not so for Ian Robinson. […] More »

In case you didn’t know, October 28 is International Animation Day, and the National Film Board is celebrating all week with Get Animated, a series of free screenings and workshops across the country. There are 13 locations coast to coast offering programs, and for everyone else there’s a set of films available for viewing online. […] More »

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission announced today new rules for how internet service providers are allowed to monitor, control, and throttle your internet access. After years of ponderous thought on the issue of how much control ISPs can wield over their customers’ web access, the CRTC has ceded the issue to the internet providers […] More »

Guests at Ottawa’s Heaven dance club expect to have a good time and dance the night away. What the mostly heterosexual crowd was not expecting this spring Saturday night was for the club to be overrun by the Gay Guerrilla Takeover. The Gay Guerrilla Takeover is an organization that does what its name says: once […] More »

With Amy Winehouse, Lindsay Lohan, and Britney Spears splashed across tabloid covers, racing toward early graves, it’s easy to think they’re stupid or sick. But there’s something irresistably subversive about women who won’t behave The website “When Will Amy Winehouse Die?” reads like a macabre count-the-jellybeans contest. How many days does a junkie have left […] More »

Jennifer Stoddart, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, put out a press release today about how Canadians need to take more control of their private information online. Notably, Stoddart seems especially concerned about Facebook, reflecting the focus of her annual report to parliament from August. The Privacy Commissioner’s office seems especially concerned about  young people posting […] More »