By Seevali Abeysekera* LONDON | 8 October 2024 (IDN) — When our Messiah arrives, we who do not know how to stand in a queue, will miraculously transform ourselves into the most orderly citizens the world has ever seen. When our Messiah arrives, we who fight our way into overcrowded buses and trains will miraculously […]
A Cultural Feast of Folk Songs That Unveils the Soul of Sri Lanka
Reviewed by Nandi Jasentuliyana, former Deputy Director-General, United Nations. LOS ANGELES, USA | 21 September 2024 (IDN) — If you have yet to experience the mesmerizing performances of the Ranwala Balakaya, you’re missing out on a cultural feast that stirs the soul and celebrates Sri Lanka’s rich heritage. Fans of traditional Sri Lankan arts packed […]
Exceptional AI-Powered Art Brings Digital Environmentalism to the UN
World renowned media artist Refik Anadol’s work on nature highlights transformative power of technology during UN General Assembly NEW YORK | 21 September 2024 (IDN | UN) — At the United Nations headquarters, where world leaders will gather to address critical global challenges during the General Assembly (UNGA) high-level week, they will have a unique […]
Holding the Press and White House Accountable: An Afterword on the Gaza War
By Marcy Winograd* SANTA BARBARA, California | 4 September 2024 (IDN) — In Norman Solomon’s new Afterword in the paperback edition of his book War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of Its Military Machine, the author excoriates the White House for arming a genocide with assistance from a negligent press. Solomon tracks […]
The Ensemble by Aja Gabel
By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden | 3 September 2024 (IDN) — After three weeks of illness and holiday I have to tell you about what I’ve been reading. This novel is so very good. It raised my spirits as I lay twice under the surgeon’s knife! Here’s a novel played to music. It’s the story […]
The Cradle of Chinese Buddhism Is A Major Tourist Attraction
A Lotus News Feature by Kalinga Seneviratne LUOYANG, China | 15 August 2024 (IDN | LCN) — Though people around the world may not relate China with Buddhism these days, the reality is that Buddhism has been an integral part of Chinese civilization and culture for 1900 years, and even today with over 200 million […]
The Manor: A Home for Greatest Stories from Africa
By Franck Kuwonu NEW YORK | 8 August 2024 (IDN | Africa Renewal) — The digital age has sparked a wave of innovation and entrepreneurship worldwide, leading to the creation of startups and tech. On the African continent, the rapid spread of digital technology is revolutionizing how young people engage with the world, empowering them […]
Literary-Prize Politics, Cold War, and the Disinformation Game
Decolonizing History and Fiction in a Neo Colony Dr. Darini Rajasingham-Senanayake* “Fair is foul and foul is fair”— William Shakespeare’s Macbeth COLOMBO | 7 August 2024 (IDN) — Why are there no Booker Prize-winning novels about mundane multicultural families that inter-married for generations, shared religion/s, language/s, histories, and co-existed for centuries, while living in relative […]
If it Bleeds, it Leads
By Thalif Deen* UNITED NATIONS | 24 July 2024 (IDN) — Tarzie Vittachi, a renowned Sri Lankan newspaper editor and one-time deputy executive director of the UN children’s agency UNICEF, once recounted the story of an African diplomat who sought his help to get coverage in the US media for his prime minister’s address to […]
A Worm’s Eye View of the World of India and China
By Sanjaya Baru* Shastri Ramachandaran’s “Beyond Binaries: The World of India and China (2008-2022)”, published by Genuine Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd., 1 January 2024, is a reminder for Indian media organisations to look abroad. This review was pubished by The Wire. NEW DELHI | 22 July 2024 (IDN) — Foreign correspondents have always been […]