Number of Posts: 18
Posts 1 - 10
La police du fun n'aime pas vous savoir seul
(The police of "fun" doesn't like to know that you're feeling lonely)
Newspaper | 24 heures
Date | 26.8.2017
Language | French
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | emojis, texting
Summary | When you type a text and specific words, you can see emojis pop up. If you type "alone" for instance, a sad-looking emoji appears. However, can't the word "alone" mean something else? Does it have to be something bad?
Image Description | Portrait of the author.
Image Tags | male(s)
«Genève veut être une référence»
("Geneva wants to be a reference")
Newspaper | La Tribune de Genève
Date | 11.9.2017
Language | French
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | computer programming, digitized education, school
Summary | Some cantons introduced computer programming as part of their school curricula, but Geneva is not one of them. It seems that they're focusing on digital equipment. Introducing digital culture to students is not enough; what about teaching them to be "critical" and talking to them about the dangers that they can face? Anne Emery- Torracinta and Marie- Claude Sawerschel answer some questions.
Image Description | Photograph of a teacher and a student working on an interactive board.
Image Tags | male(s), school
Internetstars mit Jöö-Faktor
(Internet stars with aaaaw factor)
Newspaper | Tages-Anzeiger
Date | 2.12.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | Instagram, marketing
Summary | A Swiss Instagram account is increasing popular with thousands of regular likes. It is called "Mr.Mrs.Aliu" and showcases a young Swiss family with an Albanian migration background. They are a simple, working class family and they share their wedding and holiday pictures on Instagram. Recently they have also shared an image of their newborn daughter and her nursery with links to the shops where one could buy the same furniture.
Image Description | Instagram posts showing a man and a pregnant woman, a nursery, as well as a map showing where the couple lives.
Image Tags | female(s), Instagram, male(s)
SVP-Nationalrat Addor wegen Rassismus verurteilt
(SVP parlamentarian Addor sentenced because of racism)
Newspaper | Tages-Anzeiger
Date | 17.8.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | diversity, Facebook, law, politics, Twitter
Summary | National councillor Jean-Luc Addor (Schweizerische Volkspartei) was sentenced in court under the anti-racism law. After a fatal shooting in a Swiss mosque, he posted the following on Twitter and Facebook: "We want more of it!" The court decided that this post stripped Muslim residents and citizens of Switzerland of the right to live without any detectable sarcasm which is why he was found guilty of breaking the anti-racism law and will have to pay a hefty fine.
Image Description | Keystone image of Jean-Luc Addor.
Image Tags | male(s)
Der Herr der Smileys
(The Lord of Smileys)
Newspaper | Tages-Anzeiger
Date | 29.7.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | computer programming, emojis, misunderstanding, translation
Summary | The Unicode chief, Mark Davis, assesses which new emojis make it into the Unicode which all major tech firms use. Anyone can propose an emoji but they have to argue why it is a globally significant symbol. They are then written into the Unicode which is a computer code that works for all languages. Tech firms then choose the font for the letters and emojis in which these symbols appear on their devices. Tech companies have chosen more similar emoji fonts over the last years to avoid misunderstandings between devices of different providers if the emojis are displayed differently.
Image Description | Portrait of the interviewee Mark Davis.
Image Tags | male(s)
Le gardien du temple des émojis
(The guardian of the emoji temple)
Newspaper | Le Temps
Date | 21.6.2017
Language | French
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | censorship, diversity, emojis
Summary | Mark Davis (President of the Unicode Consortium), who lives in Zurich, talks about emojis. Anyone can submit new emoji proposals; but the proposal needs to be convincing. The Consortium has been trying to be more progressive, which is why people can now use same-sex couple emojis, or a hijab emoji. The Consortium does not accept any brand emojis nor famous people emojis (although people would like to see Jesus and Justin Bieber). Keith Winstein claims that nobody should have the right to tell other people which images they can or cannot use.
Image Description | Photograph of Mark Davis
Image Tags | male(s)
Generation Blödphone?
(Generation Dumbphone?)
Newspaper | Der Bund
Date | 11.8.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | addiction, research/study, smartphone, threat, youth
Summary | A US study has conducted surveys among teenagers asking them how often they go out without their parents, whether they date or have had sex, how much they sleep , etc. The results show that teenagers go out/date less, sleep less, and have sex later in life since the advent of smartphones. Swiss media psychologist Gregor Waller criticizes the study because it bases its conclusions on mere correlation. It leaves out other important developments in the US since 2007 like the financial crisis. An equivalent Swiss study does not show similar results. Most Swiss teenagers continue to have a rich social life despite smartphones. Only about 10% of Swiss teenagers are at risk of smartphone addiction.
Image Description | Graphs showing results of the US study and a portrait of the interviewee (Swiss psychologist Gregor Waller).
Image Tags | chart, male(s)
E-Mails für verzweifelte Teenager
(Emails for desperate teenagers)
Newspaper | Appenzeller Zeitung
Date | 13.1.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | (mental) health, email, Facebook, youth
Summary | The volunteer project U25 provides peer counseling for suicidal teenagers. All volunteers at U25 are between 17 and 25 years old and they get extensive training before they are given up to three cases at a time. They exchange emails with the suicidal peers trying to counsel them into psychological stability. The volunteer counselors are not allowed to give out their cell phone numbers or befriend clients on Facebook for their own protection.
Image Description | Image of one volunteer counselor with a laptop.
Image Tags | computer/laptop, male(s), TV
Ignoranz ist Stärke
(Ignorance is strength)
Newspaper | Tages-Anzeiger
Date | 3.2.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | fake news, politics, privacy, smartphone, social media, threat
Summary | Kellyanne Conways term "alternative facts" remind of Orwell's fictional language Newspeak which also changes meanings by renaming. Many facts of contemporary life (especially under the Trump administration) remind of dystopian novels "1984" by G. Orwell and "Brave New World" by A. Huxley. We all carry smartphones with us at all times with which we can send information but which also receive and document information about us like our location, who else is in that location, our communications, purchases, and so on. Privacy has become impossible in the digital age.
Image Description | Images and videos of the film "1984" and George Orwell as well as the news clip where Kellyanne Conway mentions "alternative facts".
Image Tags | female(s), male(s), TV
«Ich bin der Dolmetscher der Kinder»
(«I am the translator of the children»)
Newspaper | Tages-Anzeiger
Date | 13.6.2017
Language | German
Country | Switzerland
Topic Tags | childhood, smartphone
Summary | A pediatrician recommends parents to let their children use smartphones and other digital media as much as they like if they do well in school and are socially competent. If they have issues in school or with their social competency, then parents should limit their smartphone use as much as possible. Children must be taught to take responsibility. It is however counter-productive to demonize digital media as they have become inevitable part of all our lives.
Image Description | Portrait of the pediatrician.
Image Tags | male(s)
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