FB's #DigitalIndia "compromised" net neutrality; "predetermined" questions posed to Modi at FB HQ

Screenshot of controversial Facebook source

By A Representative
Independent IT buffs have come down heavily on what they claim to be Facebook's effort to compromise net neutrality by asking its IIndian clients to change their FB picture to support the #DigitalIndia campaign following FB founder Mark Zuckerberg's decision to do it after he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at FB headquarters in the US.
The buffs have said, by changing their Facebook profile pictures, many have “unknowingly given their vote to Internet.org”, a Facebook initiative. Internet.org brings on board 6 corporate giants, Samsung, Media Tec, Ericsson, Nokia, Opera Software, and Qualcomm, to offer free Internet services to developing nations.
The buffs have quoted the Hacker News to say that the HTML source code “slyly records” the approval to Internet.org once the profile picture is changed in the backdrop of #DitigalIndia tricolour.

The Facebook, however, has denied this. In a statement it has said, “There is absolutely no connection between updating your profile picture for digital India and Internet.org. An engineer mistakenly used the words 'Internet.org profile picture' as a shorthand name he chose for part of the code. But this product in no way connects to or registers support for Internet.org. We are changing the code today to eliminate any confusion.”
But IT buffs are not convinced. They say there is a hidden agenda of Zuckerberg i as by “ changing your DP you're not supporting a Digital India but @Facebook's internet.org initiative”, said Abhash Kumar, a social media marketing expert in a Facebook post, adding, “Facebook is counting and showing it to Indian gov as a support for Internet.org!”, adding one has only “look at the source code” to understand where things are moving.
Pratik Sinha, an Ahmedabad-based software engineer and a social activist, said in an article, following the Facebook Townhall event, where Modi answered a few questions, Zuckerberg and Modi “both updated their profile images to support Digital India”, and subsequently, many people visited facebook.com/supportidigitalindia to update their profile pictures in support of Digital India.”

Pointing out that those who have background in software engineering could understand the issue pretty well, Sinha said, “In the source code, you would find an oddly named class “internetOrgProfilePicture__prideAvatar”. In India, inernet.org can be opened only on Reliance connections, not on any other other Internet service providers.

Comments Sinha, “The internet.org class name in a page which is supposedly to Support Digital India is not coincidental. If some of you are following internet activists on Twitter (like @nixxin) who are fighting the battle of net neutrality, you’d know that for yesterday’s PR event, Facebook paid for business class tickets and accommodation for journalists.”
Several Indian newspapers carried a tagline at the end of their articles they wrote from the Facebook headquarters. The tagline said, the writer was “on the invitation of Facebook which is paying for accommodation and travel.”

Sinha has also dug in out how, apart from the journalists who had been paid for, also turned up individuals who were asked to put “inane, pre-determined questions” to the Prime Minister at an Facebook event.
Sinha quoted executive director of CNET, Ian Sherr, who was covering the, as tweeting that “Questions from the audience are predetermined. So there’s that. $FB #Modiberg.”CNET is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts and videos on technology and consumer electronics globally.
Then, Siri Srinivas who works for Guardian and is based in New York had the following comment to offer on Twitter: “Ah Facebook, flies in woman (from delhi) to ask Indian prime minister (who lives in delhi) about Indian women in Menlo Park.” Menlo Park, California is where the Facebook HQ is located.
Said Sinha, “The first question in the Facebook townhall went to Vir Kashyap. Surprise, Surprise. Vir Kashyap is the COO of Babajobs which is an internet.org partner.”

Comments

India's chemical industry: The missing piece of Atmanirbhar Bharat

By N.S. Venkataraman* Rarely a day passes without the Prime Minister or a cabinet minister speaking about the importance of Atmanirbhar Bharat . The Start-up India scheme is a pillar in promoting this vision, and considerable enthusiasm has been reported in promoting start-up projects across the country. While these developments are positive, Atmanirbhar Bharat does not seem to have made significant progress within the Indian chemical industry . This is a matter of high concern that needs urgent and dispassionate analysis.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

Remembering a remarkable rebel: Personal recollections of Comrade Himmat Shah

By Rajiv Shah I first came in contact with Himmat Shah in the second half of the 1970s during one of my routine visits to Ahmedabad , my maternal hometown. I do not recall the exact year, but at that time I was working in Delhi with the CPI -owned People’s Publishing House (PPH) as its assistant editor, editing books and writing occasional articles for small periodicals. Himmatbhai — as I would call him — worked at the People’s Book House (PBH), the CPI’s bookshop on Relief Road in Ahmedabad.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Ahmedabad's Sabarmati riverfront under scrutiny after Subhash Bridge damage

By Rosamma Thomas* Large cracks have appeared on Subhash Bridge across the Sabarmati in Ahmedabad, close to the Gandhi Ashram . Built in 1973, this bridge, named after Subhash Chandra Bose , connects the eastern and western parts of the city and is located close to major commercial areas. The four-lane bridge has sidewalks for pedestrians, and is vital for access to Ashram Road , Ellis Bridge , Gandhinagar and the Sabarmati Railway Station .

As 2024 draws nearer, threatening signs appear of more destructive wars

By Bharat Dogra The four years from 2020 to 2023 have been very difficult and high risk years for humanity. In the first two years there was a pandemic and such severe disruption of social and economic life that countless people have not yet recovered from its many-sided adverse impacts. In the next two years there were outbreaks of two very high-risk wars which have worldwide implications including escalation into much wider conflicts. In addition there were highly threatening signs of increasing possibility of other very destructive wars. As the year 2023 appears to be headed for ending on a very grim note, there are apprehensions about what the next year 2024 may bring, and there are several kinds of fears. However to come back to the year 2020 first, the pandemic harmed and threatened a very large number of people. No less harmful was the fear epidemic, the epidemic of increasing mental stress and the cruel disruption of the life and livelihoods particularly among the weaker s...

No action yet on complaint over assault on lawyer during Tirunelveli public hearing

By A Representative A day after a detailed complaint was filed seeking disciplinary action against ten lawyers in Tirunelveli for allegedly assaulting human rights lawyer Dr. V. Suresh, no action has yet been taken by the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, according to the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL).

Celebrating 125 yr old legacy of healthcare work of missionaries

Vilas Shende, director, Mure Memorial Hospital By Moin Qazi* Central India has been one of the most fertile belts for several unique experiments undertaken by missionaries in the field of education and healthcare. The result is a network of several well-known schools, colleges and hospitals that have woven themselves into the social landscape of the region. They have also become a byword for quality and affordable services delivered to all sections of the society. These institutions are characterised by committed and compassionate staff driven by the selfless pursuit of improving the well-being of society. This is the reason why the region has nursed and nurtured so many eminent people who occupy high positions in varied fields across the country as well as beyond. One of the fruits of this legacy is a more than century old iconic hospital that nestles in the heart of Nagpur city. Named as Mure Memorial Hospital after a British warrior who lost his life in a war while defending his cou...

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

Search This Blog