Anthro roundup: “The Wenner-Gren Foundation: Supporting Anthropology for 75 Years”

The Wenner-Gren Foundation is celebrating its 75th anniversary in 2016. It was founded in 1941 with an endowment of approximately USfoundation and the field have in essence grown up together. Wenner-Gren preceded the other major US funder of anthropology, the National Science Foundation, by almost two decades and, through its grants, fellowships, sponsored symposia, and … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: Czarny Protest…Brexit event.. Hungary and its crackdown on opposition press…

Czarny Protest: how Polish women took to the streets open Democracy News Analysis – by Kasia Narkowicz After two decades of feminist pressure, the people took to the streets. But why now? Polish women protest against a legislative proposal for a total ban on abortion in Poland. PAimages/Geert Vanden Wijngaert. All rights reserved. Joy and despair in … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “France burkini highest court suspends ban…

France burkini highest court suspends ban BBC News | Europe | World Edition France’s highest administrative court suspends a ban on controversial full-body “burkini” swimsuits in a town on the Mediterranean coast. The burkini as a mirror  open Democracy News Analysis – by Adam Seligman Unless we are willing to live with the discomfort of what is … Read more

Journalism agenda: John Oliver and newsonomics

John Oliver has given us the best defense of newspapers ever  washingtonpost.com – Op-Ed Columns by Kathleen Parker News is a bizarre kind of food chain whose most important members are at the bottom. Newsonomics: After John Oliver, the you-get-what-you-pay-for imperative has never been clearer  Nieman Journalism Lab by Ken Doctor Can John Oliver’s 19 minutes rivet … Read more

Anthropology roundup: Nancy Scheper-Hughes on the Catholic Church…”Dialogs before Suicide…

Nancy Scheper-Hughes shares reflections on the Catholic Church anthropologyworks by Culture In Global Affairs Republished with permission from Berkeley News Nancy Scheper-Hughes. Source: Berkeley News In her research, writing and teaching, medical anthropologist Nancy Scheper-Hughes focuses especially on violence, suffering and premature death on the margins of the modern world. Best-known for her work on the … Read more

A late tribute to Umberto Eco (and also to Harper Lee)…

Archival Interview: Umberto Eco on Truth, Fiction, and the Holy Grail “It was a beautiful story. Too bad no one will find out about it.” “You surely don’t believe that you’re the only writer of stories in this world. Sooner or later, someone — a greater liar than Baudolino — will tell it.” — Umberto Eco, Baudolino In Memoriam | Umberto Eco: … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: “Pope greets migrants in Vatican…”Iran rejoins world economy as sanctions are lifted…

Pope greets migrants in Vatican  BBC News | Europe | World Edition Pope Francis greets several thousand migrants in St Peter’s Square and as the Catholic Church marks a day dedicated to refugees. Iran rejoins world economy as sanctions are lifted AL JAZEERA ENGLISH (IN DEPTH) Economic isolation ends after UN certifies Iran’s compliance with 2015 accord, … Read more

Cyberculture agenda: “A Victory for Privacy and Transparency: HRW v. DEA… “Facebook, Twitter and Google pledge to increase hate speech moderation efforts in Germany…

A Victory for Privacy and Transparency: HRW v. DEA EFF.org Updates by Mark Rumold In a victory for millions of people in the U.S. who have placed telephone calls to locations overseas, EFF and Human Rights Watch have confirmed that the Drug Enforcement Administration’s practice of collecting those records in bulk has stopped and that the … Read more

Eurosphere agenda: ” beautiful sketches that celebrate life in Paris…

French cartoonist shares beautiful sketches that celebrate life in Paris Mashable! by Sam Haysom LONDON — In the wake of last Friday’s Paris attacks, a French cartoonist has been sketching scenes that celebrate life in France’s capital city. Resettling Syrian Refugees: An Alternative Slate Articles by Reihan Salam In the wake of the Paris attacks, a number … Read more

Literati roundup: A new book on Participatory culture… “Sci-Fi’s Hugo Awards and the Battle for Pop Culture’s Soul….

New book: Participatory Culture in a Networked Era by Henry Jenkins, Mimi Ito, and me!  apophenia In 2012, Henry Jenkins approached Mimi Ito and I with a crazy idea that he’d gotten from talking to the folks at Polity. Would we like to sit down and talk through our research and use that as the basis … Read more

Erdoğan toll today: A local Journalist, Mine Bekiroğlu, sentenced to prison…

An EU-Turkey Reset Project Syndicate by Martti Ahtisaari, et al. Never have the European Union and Turkey needed one another more, and yet rarely have they been so distant. The EU should redouble its efforts to revitalize the relationship, strengthening both its criticism of Turkey’s democratic backsliding and the credibility of the accession process. Turkey and EU … Read more

Such a peace process: Turkish PM targets Kurdish Leader… ““Homeland Security Act Proposal Undermines in Human Rights…

“Homeland Security Act Proposal Undermines in Human Rights”  Bianet :: English Human Rights Watch released a report, warning the government on the new act proposal concerning Turkey’s homeland security. The parliament should reconsider the parts that expands police duties, the report said. HDP co-chair Demirtaş responsible for any bloodshed: Turkish PM PM Davutoğlu declares that HDP co-chair … Read more

Two autocrats, Erdoğan and Putin, to meet in Turkey… Dispatches from Turkey….

Turkey, Russia to seek new ways to deepen economic ties despite disagreements in Syria, Ukraine Moscow and Ankara will likely focus on finding new ways to enhance their already-tight relationship during Russian president’s high-level Ankara visit Turkey, Russia building new investment platform for joint projects across Russia’s regions The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and Renaissance Holding … Read more

Turkish Constitutional Court working on 10 percent election threshold… Turkey’s Science Minister declares Muslims discovered Earth… Dispatches from Turkey…

Turkish Constitutional Court working on 10 percent election threshold Turkey’s Constitutional Court is considering applications that call for lifting the 10 percent threshold in the Turkish election system, according to Constitutional Court head Haşim Kılıç. Muslims discovered Earth is round, Turkey’s Science Minister says After President Erdoğan’s ‘Muslims discovered America’ claim, a Turkish minister raises the ante … Read more

Pope Francis visits Blue Mosque…. İstanbul news roundup…

Pope in Istanbul ‘silent adoration’  BBC News | Europe | World Edition Pope Francis stands in “silent adoration” in Istanbul’s Blue Mosque alongside the city’s top Muslim cleric, on the second day of his Turkey visit. VIDEO: Pope Francis visits Blue Mosque  BBC News | Europe | World Edition Mark Lowen reports from Istanbul in Turkey on … Read more