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Published November 10, 2014

MOSCOW The Kremlin-funded Russia Today media group has launched an international news service that it claims will fight the "propaganda" of other news media.

The service started Monday, called Sputnik, will have bureaus in more than 30 countries and send its news to local audiences by radio stations, websites and social media.

The launch underlines Russia's consistent complaints that world news media are biased against the country. In a major speech last month, President Vladimir Putin bemoaned what he called "total control of global media (that) has made it possible to when desired to portray white as black."

Russia Today chief Dmitry Kiselyov says "we are against aggressive propaganda ... this can only result in bloodshed."

Russia Today also includes the RIA-Novosti news agency and the satellite TV channel RT.

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Kremlin-funded media group launches international news portals, stations to 'tell the untold'

Cable operator Virgin Media has issued a brief apology after an unspecified number of their customers suffered problems accessing websites due to a fault with the ISPs Web Safe (Parental Control) service, which uses network-level filtering to block potentially age-inappropriate websites from the eyes of children.

The Government requires that all of the countrys largest broadband ISPs offer customers an enforced option about whether or not to enable similar network-level filtering solutions and the majority of subscribers generally choose not to use it.

But in this case even those whom had specifically elected not to enable Virgin Medias Web Safe service were also suddenly finding their access being obstructed due to an unusual fault with the same system, with the first angry reports coming in at around 5-6pm on Saturday (8th Nov 2014).

Customers complained that their attempts to browse various websites were instead being forwarded by the providers DNS servers to https://websafe.virginmedia.com/select?originalURL= (i.e. the ISPs Web Safe filtering system), which then promptly returned an SSL error (Secure Connection Failed). The problem appeared to affect websites sporadically, with some like Google and Facebook working fine and most others throwing up the error.

Furthermore customers who called Virgin Media to complain were initially greeted by an automated message that simply advised them to reboot their routers, which obviously didnt work because the problem was at the ISPs end. The ISP eventually coughed up to the issue at around 8pm (here) and it wasfinally resolved by early Sunday morning.

A Virgin Media support agent said:

Im pleased to confirm that this was fixed last night.

Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience caused.

Virgin Medias WebSafe filter is DNS based and so the ISPs more informed customers were able to work around the problem by swapping to different Domain Name Servers, such as OpenDNS or Googles own Public DNS. People who already use one of the non-ISP DNS alternatives were naturally not affected by the providers fault.

One interesting outcome of the recent problems is how some subscribers have informed ISPreview.co.uk that they will no longer be using Web Safe.

Continued here:
Virgin Medias Censorship Tool Bodges UK Customers Internet Traffic

As NASA gears up to launch its first flight test of the Orion spacecraft in less than a month, reporters are invited to visit NASA's Jonson Space Center onNov. 19and explore the proving ground and the journey that eventually will lead humans to Mars.

"NASA's Orion Exploration Flight Test-1 is an important step for NASA's exploration plans beyond low-Earth orbit by testing many key systems such as the heat shield, flight computers, parachutes, power systems, and guidance navigation and control," said JSC Exploration and Integration Systems DirectorSteve Stich.

NASA is developing the first-ever mission to identify, capture and relocate an asteroid to a stable orbit around the moon, and send astronauts to return samples to Earth.

"This uncrewed flight test is important for the Asteroid Redirect Mission because Orion is the spacecraft for which the crew will live and work to accomplish this 26-28 day mission in the 2020s, farther in space than humans have ever traveled," Stich said.

The Asteroid Redirect Mission will advance NASA's human journey to Mars, testing the capabilities needed for future crewed missions to the Red Planet.

Activities will begin at8 a.m.Nov. 19. During the media event, reporters will get a behind-scenes look at the latest technology developments that could be used in future exploration missions, including a next-generation spacesuit and spacewalk tools and advanced life support systems. They'll have opportunities to talk to veteran astronauts who are conducting the first simulated asteroid mission spacewalk dives at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory to test these new developments.

Reporters will meet JSC DirectorEllen Ochoaand NASA program representatives of the Exploration, Orion and Robotics programs and have live interview opportunities with these experts.

Media also will tour the Mission Control Center, including the flight control room for Orion's first test; the Orion mockup and the space capsule, Orion cockpit displays and docking system hardware; the lunar and asteroid sample curation laboratory to learn sample collection and containment techniques; and the Food Laboratory to talk with a scientist about future exploration food technologies.

To register for this event, U.S. reporters must contact the JSC Newsroom by5 p.m. CST Thursday, Nov. 13. The registration deadline for non-U.S. citizens is5 p.m. CST Monday, Nov. 10.

For more information about Orion its flight test, visit:

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Media Day At Johnson To Explore NASA's Journey To Mars

South Africas government is lobbying media executives and using its advertising muscle to win its battle for a more supine press.

A management fight at Hosken Consolidated Investments Ltd. (HCI) revealed that a cabinet minister and a company director tried to influence coverage at its e.tv channel, the nations biggest private television station that has reported on corruption and graft allegations leveled against President Jacob Zuma.

The government already controls the South African Broadcasting Corp., which has three terrestrial television channels and 20 radio stations. Its advertising provides the main source of revenue for the New Age, a newspaper that reports the positive side of news, and 24-hour news channel ANN7, which says it provides constructive, nation-building stories. Both outlets are owned by companies controlled by the members of the Gupta family who are friends with Zuma and employ his son.

Theyre using state power and resources to try and give support to a more sympathetic and less critical media, Anton Harber, a journalism professor at Johannesburgs University of the Witwatersrand, said by phone on Nov. 4. It means a decrease in public debate and accountability.

Newspapers including the Daily Sun, Sowetan and The Citizen, The Times and The New Age, commemorate the life of the former South African President Nelson Mandela following the announcement of his death in Johannesburg, last year. Close

Newspapers including the Daily Sun, Sowetan and The Citizen, The Times and The New Age,... Read More

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Newspapers including the Daily Sun, Sowetan and The Citizen, The Times and The New Age, commemorate the life of the former South African President Nelson Mandela following the announcement of his death in Johannesburg, last year.

Political interference is compounding pressure on South African media already contending with cutbacks in advertising and editorial budgets, according to Herman Wasserman, a professor of media studies at the University of Cape Town.

There is decreased tolerance and increased impatience with the media, he said by phone on Oct. 31. The future for newsrooms is quite bleak.

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South African Media Squeezed by Growing State Pressure

Former Giro director outlines struggle to clear his name against financial fraud allegations

Former Giro dItalia director Michele Acquarone has come forward with an open letter to the media that details the struggle he has faced to try and clear his name after being dismissed from his position at RCS Sport a year ago for allegedly playing a role in the disappearance of 13 million from the company.

RCS Media Group, owners of RCS Sport that manages sporting events including the Giro dItalia, Milan-San Remo, Strade Bianche and the Tour of Lombardy, fired Acquarone from his role as Chief Operating Officer last October after discovering the misappropriation of funds. It was reported that the funds were slowly withdrawn from RCS Sport accounts over several years through fraudulent bank statements.

RCS is suggesting that Acquarone should have had knowledge of the financial situation. It was reported that RCS provided him with proof of signed documents that authorised millions of Euro in transactions from RCS Media Group accounts to minor accounts for RCS Sport, accounts that he was legally responsible for.

In a letter to the media, Acquarone wrote that on September 16, 2013 an RCS Media Group control officer showed him a copy of a bank statement that looked forged and said the company had proof that signatures were forged on official documents but that that was the first time he had ever seen an RCS bank statement.

It was the first time I saw an RCS bank statement and it was the first time I went to the bank on behalf of RCS, Acquarone wrote. The banks Director told us that on April 2012 she personally warned the Financial officers at RCS Mediagroup that a staggering amount of money (cash withdrawals) was gradually disappearing from the accounts of RCS Sport. We were shocked. We immediately gave the internal alarm.

Acquarone has always maintained that he is innocent and denies any wrongdoing. He also believes that RCS Media Group has used him as a scapegoat to cover up an uncomfortable situation.

The RCS MediaGroup lawyers instead are saying that it doesnt matter if somebody forged signatures, documents and statements," Acquarone wrote. "They say (they lie) that the Financial and Management control were under my responsibility and I have the culpa in vigilando. They say that I was the Managing Director so the responsibility is 100% mine.

The RCS Media Group's strategy is quite clear, he wrote. RCS has to protect its huge core business (the publishing business, 1,3 billion Euros) and it cant let the Financial Department of the parent company (the heart of the company) be involved in a big scandal. So they had to play dirty. I was the perfect scapegoat. In the last thirteen months I took all the shit on me and nobody ever talked about the parent company involvement.

Acquarone is not under investigation by the Italian police but he questions whether the investigation into the companys misappropriation of funds is still on-going.

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Acquarone writes open letter to media