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"Egypt Rap School for Biggenas" is plastered across the wall of a tiny recording studio in Alexandria, Egypt. Above it, hang three portraits: Notorious BIG, Bob Marley and Tupac Shakur. Like millions of fans, Temraz - his stage name - grew up listening to these icons.

Now, the 29-year-old Arabic rapper is part of Revolution Records, an underground label that he helped establish in Alexandria 11 years ago.

"We decided to name the label Revolution Records because we thought rap was still a very weird [genre] to Egyptian ears," Temraz said, before rolling a cigarette. "We also named it 'revolution' because rap music is about rebelling. To us, [rap] is about rebelling against everything."

Read:Egypt's women find their voice against sexual harassment

There are 14 members in Revolution Records, which is one of many hip-hop movements in Egypt. Cairo, the capital, has a bustling scene. But Alexandria is considered the pioneer of rap music in the country.

Before the Arab Spring, rappers from Alexandria released tracks that mocked social norms and crony political elites. The lack of mainstream attention even enabled some artists to push the boundaries of censorship. And while their music was gaining traction, it wasn't popular enough to invite a crackdown from the state.

But in today's Egypt, where thousands of youth are in jail for criticizing the regime, rapping about politics is riskier than ever.

Rapping to ridicule

Shakur (photo, above) is the stage name of a 31-year-old artist who is part of a group called DaCliQue 203. He said that most rappers have been reluctant to ridicule Egypt's President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi. His group, however, is one of few exceptions.

In February 2014, DaCliQue 203 released "Ana Malak," which means"I'm the King." The track was a remix of a song that Shakur originally recorded in 2005. The new version was made to mock el-Sissi who was by then fixed in power.

Notorious BIG, Bob Marley and Tupac Shakur bedeck the wall at Revolution Records' studio

"The lyrics go like this," said Shakur, as he proceeded to recite his impersonation of el-Sissi. "I'm not on the right and I'm not on the left. I'm not an Islamist nor an anarchist. I just follow the money so show me the money."

The song was daring. And yet, Shakur wouldn't record another track for three more years. He said he couldn't bring himself to make another one. Not after his younger brother, a former supporter of the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, passed away suddenly in his home before "Ana Malak" was released.

Read:Marteria - a German rapper in Africa

"We always fought about my love for hip-hop," said Shakur. "[My brother] thought I was wasting my time. He thought I should be writing articles about politics instead. But at the same time, he remained curious. He always wanted to know about the lyrics I was writing."

Other rappers became increasingly political while Shakur took a break from hip-hop. In April 2016, Revolution Records released "Masahsh Keda" - "That's Not Right" - on YouTube. The group appropriated the phrase from el-Sissi, who often says it condescendingly when addressing his citizens. The group made a music video for the song and included English subtitles.

"We sampled el-Sissi's voice and incorporated it in our music," Temraz told DW. "The track did well when we first uploaded it. I think it received more than 200,000 likes."

Despite the success, Temraz feared that the song might bring reprisal. After the track was released, members of Revolution Records were invited to Denmark to perform in a concert. Temraz was anxious when he arrived at the Cairo airport. He thought he would be arrested. Lucky for him, nothing happened.

Weeks later, the group was informed that "Masahsh Keda" had crossed a line. Their friend, who worked in the presidential palace, warned them that the government wouldn't tolerate another track like that again.

"We had to stop," Temraz said. "I gave up trying to change this country for the better."

Moving away, coming back

Not everyone lost hope. Some rappers tried to broach sensitive topics without explicitly blaming the state. Y-Crew, which is one of Egypt's first hip-hop groups, released a track titled "Blinded" nine months ago. The song was about the abuse and violence that street children face in Egypt.

"Mainstream music in Egypt is just about love. It doesn't talk about real problems," said Omar Bofolot, one of the original members of Y-Crew. "We want to talk about real stuff. But we don't want to preach to people about what they should do."

The group has recently moved to Dubai to work on their latest album. They told DW that they are also losing hope that their music can make a positive impact in Egypt.

"We been rapping about social and political issues since we started," said Shahin, the second member of Y-Crew. "Nothing is changing [in Egypt], and we're getting sick of it. Our next album is just going to promote peace, love and unity."

Shakur, however, won't stop rapping about the issues that matter to him. In January, he released his comeback track. And now, he's writing lyrics about the refugee crisis in Egypt and Europe.

Thousands of refugees and Egyptians have died trying to cross the Mediterranean from Alexandria. Shakur knows their stories firsthand. He's been a migration advocate for years and has even collaborated with some refugee rappers in Egypt.

The oppressive political climate doesn't scare him. Even if Egyptian rap becomes more commercial, he vows to never censor himself.

"I have to keep it real," he told DW. "The price might be bigger. But Egyptians are paying a heavy price anyways."

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Egyptian rappers fight against censorship - Deutsche Welle

China shuts down dozens of popular paparazzi social media accounts overnight.

China is tightening censorship day by day, and it is often difficult to predict who will be hit by the iron fist next day. Chinese celebrity gossip social media accounts have just become the latest victim.

On June 7, Chinas internet censor, Beijing Network Information Office, suddenly announced the closing down of dozens of popular social media accounts mostly related to celebrity gossip and entertainment news both on Weibo (Chinese equivalent of Twitter) and WeChat (Chinas most popular social network). Although the Office hasnt published the list of shuttered accounts, some reports said at least 60 accounts have fallen victims to the campaign. None of these social media accounts, albeit with hundreds of thousands of followers, were able to leave their last words. Among these deleted accounts is Chinas No. 1 Paparazzo Zhuo Wei, who is famous for exposing Chinese celebrities scandals and has gained the nickname of the Discipline Inspection Commission on stars and celebrities.

According to Beijing Network Information Office, the crackdown on paparazzi news is for the young people to have a healthy Internet life as the summer vacation is approaching. Meanwhile, the Office also encourages the netizens to report on any vulgar information, in order to maintain the purification of the cyberspace. Those individuals who provide important clues will get rewards.

One netizen commented under the announcement, We want to report you, Beijing Network Information Office, and the comment was deleted soon after it got hundreds of thumbs-up.

Ironically, the Office claims that the crackdown has won positive feedback from all walks of lives.

It is noteworthy that the crackdown also brings huge financial losses to many of these accounts owners. For example, in the name of anti-vulgar information, one social media account, which published sharp movie reviews and has nothing to do with celebrity gossip, was also shut down, despite that the account has already gained financial investment from capital ventures.

Tong Zongjin, an associate Professor of China University of Political science and Law, said on his Weibo:

The crackdown on celebrity gossip social media accounts involves not only the political rights, but also the property rights. If any account wants to take legal action, Id like to provide free legal service.

Soon after, Tongs Weibo account was shut down, too.

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China Tightens Censorship: Farewell, Celebrity Gossip? - The Diplomat

CARACAS Journalist Laura Castillo and a group of six writers and artists in Venezuela are fighting censorship here by delivering the news personally to their compatriots.

Last month they started riding public buses around the capital city and reading three-minute news broadcasts from behind a square cardboard frame meant to evoke a television set. El Bus TV updates its viewers on the countrys economic and social crisis in a way other news sources dont under President Nicols Maduro a former bus driver, incidentally.

We want to hit at that wall of government censorship and we thought the bus is a medium that brings together the diverse population we want to inform, Ms. Castillo said.

She and her colleagues launched volunteer-run El Bus TV in part to mark a troubling anniversary. Ten years ago last month, Venezuelas late strongman Hugo Chvez shut down what was then the countrys most popular private media outlet, Radio Caracas Televisin. RCTV was overtly critical of Mr. Chvez, who blasted the media as an enemy of the people.

Read more at The Wall Street Journal.

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Venezuelan journalists fight censorship by delivering news personally - Fox News

WWSB ABC 7

Dick Smothers on Comedy and Censorship WWSB ABC 7 SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB)--In recent weeks we've seen comedians such as Bill Maher, Kathy Griffin and Stephen Colbert face backlash for using certain language, images, and jokes. Legendary comedian, musician and actor Dick Smothers spoke to ABC7 at ...

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Dick Smothers on Comedy and Censorship - WWSB ABC 7

A screenshot of a page from the Virtual Museum of Censorship featuring banned books.(photo bycensorshiplebanon.org)

Author:Florence Massena Posted June 6, 2017

What is censored more often in Lebanon: sex or politics? It depends on the timing, according to the Virtual Museum of Censorship, an online database tracking banned and censored material since Lebanese independence in 1943.

Having become familiar with some of the material, Gino Raidy, the vice president of MARCH, the nongovernmental organization (NGO) behind the museum, told Al-Monitor, Different trends could be observed according to the decades. In the 1940s, it mostly involved mentioning Israel.

Raidy said, In the 1950s-1960s, sexual explicitness was tolerated, but not political discussions. In the early 2000s, there was strong opposition to heavy metal. People would be arrested in the streets for wearing a heavy metal band T-shirt as many thought it was satanic. What stood to be censored became clearer after the Syrian army left in 2005, mostly focusing on sectarian and politics-related material. Nowadays, we note that LGBT art and events are getting targeted more and more.

The virtual museum aims to identify not only what has been banned and censored, but also the reasons behind it, in an effort to present the big picture when it comes to limits on freedom of expression in Lebanon. The database launched on May 24, with an event at Phoenicia University, in Mazraat al-Daoudiyeh, in the south. An exhibition of panels and blackboards with words and names of individuals redacted to symbolize information omitted through censorship was followed by a discussion among free speech experts and activists. Participants included lawyer Hussein el-Achi, photojournalist Hussein Baydoun, author and activist Joumana Haddad, journalist and activist Luna Safwan and graffiti artist Omar Kabbani.

In 2013 in Beirut, MARCH had organized Censorship in Lebanon, An Uncensored Look, a panel discussion on freedom of expression. Looking ahead, the team hopes to organize others in Tripoli after the end of Ramadan and maybe in the Bekaa Valley.

We believe that getting out of Beirut is important not only to inform people about censorship but also to have more discussions, address a different crowd living in rural areas and see what they think about the issue, said Raidy, who is also a blogger. Virtually, anyone can see what cultural material has been banned and censored, as well as what journalists and activists have been through when it comes to the expression of certain issues. We also invite people to submit entries if they hear about something new.

Control over every cultural product in Lebanon is based on a law or decree, as detailed in Censorship in Lebanon: Law and Practice, a 2010 study by Nizar Saghieh, Rana Saghieh and Nayla Geagea, who are lawyers and members of The Legal Agenda, an NGO that follows socio-legal developments in Lebanon and the broader Middle East.

Censorship of films in Lebanon is based on four very vague principles: respect for public morals, respect for the reputation or status of state authorities, respect for the sensitivities of the public and avoiding sectarian or religious incitement, and resisting calls that are unfavorable to the interests of Lebanon, Ghida Frangieh, a lawyer with The Legal Agenda, told Al-Monitor. If the General Security, which is a security agency, wants to ban a film, it must refer it to an administrative committee, which reviews the film and gives its recommendation to the Ministry of Interior, which will make the final decision. The procedure is not transparent, and most of the time, the reason why a film is censored or banned is not given.

To this, Raidy added, From the data we collected, the two main organizations asking General Security for censorship are first the Catholic Information Center and then Dar al-Fatwa, the leading Sunni religious institution in the country.

For example, in Nadine Labakis filmWhere Do We Go Now (2012), a scene with a priest and a sheikh speaking to the public through the local mosques loudspeaker was cut. More recently, a Druze cleric's apparition was masked by a black dot in Philippe Aractingis 2017 filmListen /Ismaii. Both decisions were supposedly based on concerns of sectarian incitement.

The Boycott Bureau for Israel also made sure that the name of Steven Spielberg, who has donated money in Israel, would be removed from posters and films, although we can watch them. This was silly, Raidy said. They also asked that Wonder Woman be banned because the lead actress is Israeli.

Two filmmakers recently challenged censorship decisions before the State Council: Danielle Arbid, for her filmBeirut Hotel (2011), and Reine Mitri, for the banning of her documentary In This Land Lay Graves of Mine (2015), about people displaced during the Lebanese civil war. Arbid lost her challenge, with the State Council deciding that censorship was justified because the filmattacked the reputation of the authorities in regard to the investigation of Prime Minister Rafik Hariris assassination in 2005. The censors had disapproved of a scene that referenced a USB memory stick with documents on it about Hariri's death.

The State Council even ruled that General Security can exercise prior censorship of film plots itself, which is a very broad interpretation of the law and an infringement on freedom of expression, Frangieh said. But it hasnt yet ruled on Mitris film, and we hope that the ban will be overturned in the end. Giving a voice to the victims of displacement during the civil war cannot be viewed as inciting sectarian tensions. It is very important for a Lebanese artist to have access to her or his main audience in Lebanon.

According to Raidy, the social impact of censorship in Lebanon is clear. People arent allowed to speak about very important and unsolved things, he said.

About the taboo on discussing the war and displaced people, he said, This is reality. It is silly to forbid people to talk about it. Plus, the country is very proud of its freedom of speech, and maybe it is not as bad as in the other countries, but not as good as it could be.

Raidy also warned against the dangers of self-censorship, stating, Journalists just dont investigate anymore for fear of getting in trouble. Even local filmdistributors dont procure a filmthat could be a problem for the General Security.

Indeed, many things must remain unsaid in a country that is proud of its liberty.

Read More: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2017/06/lebanon-censorship-museum-freedom-of-expression.html

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Online database gives uncensored look into Lebanon's censorship - Al-Monitor