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New security laws the latest blow to Hong Kong’s film sector

Published

2 years ago

August 25, 2021

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In another hit to the industry, authorities are cracking down on censorship as they take reign of the region’s video scene.

In their latest national security push, Hong Kong authorities will begin scanning old films to ensure they don’t breach newly imposed censorship laws.

It’s the latest round of measures in a large-scale crackdown designed to discover and punish Beijing’s critics and political opponents.

The move was implemented by authorities following the largely violent democracy protests which overran the city two years ago.

Initially, authorities previously announced that all future films would be scrutinised back in June.

However, this latest update goes even further.

What new regulations are in place now?

The new regulations enforce that all films released before the crackdown will also be scanned.

Hong Kong’s national security laws are designed to prevent any material or behaviour that is considered to be secession, subversion, terrorism or collusion with foreign forces.

Almost all of the individuals who have been arrested under the new measures so far are pro-democracy supporters.

Those charged can face up to three years behind bars under the new law, while also paying $177 thousand Australian dollars in fines.

Additionally, venues caught showing films that failed to receive green-light approval will have their viewing licenses revoked.

Hong Kong follows suit

The new laws will draw on similarities of China’s ruling in regards to the release of films.

Yet some believe this is a drawback for the region renowned for their historically cultural film scene.

It has also had repercussions on film and documentary companies, with many cancelling a number of recent or upcoming productions and costing the sector thousands.

Yet, while it’s just another fallback for the film industry, Hong Kong’s strict nature in relation to security laws should come as no surprise.

Earlier this year, Hong Kong media was targeted in pro-democracy newspaper raids.

An army of 500 police officers raided the computers and notebooks of journalists, looking for content that breached national security.

Written by Rebecca Borg

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World

AI creates a song imitating Drake and The Weeknd

Published

6 mins ago

June 2, 2023

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A big surprise for music fans when they heard a new song featuring Drake and The Weeknd. But there’s a catch!

The viral song was created by artificial intelligence.

A new song that sounds like Drake and The Weeknd has gone viral, but it was created by artificial intelligence.

Now, there’s a crusade against AI music.

The song,“Heart on My Sleeve”was created by artificial intelligence and quickly racked up millions of views on TikTok, Spotify, and YouTube.

Record label, Universal Music Group (UMG) is not happy about the song that used AI-generated vocals to simulate pop music artists Drake Graham and The Weeknd.

UMG flexed their muscle and forced the song featuring some of its biggest artists to be removed from Spotify and TikTok.

According to reports, UMG is taking it a step further and sent letters to Spotify, Apple Music, and other music streamers requesting they block AI tools from training their models on the melodies and lyrics of UMG artists.

Les Borsai, the Co-Founder of Wave Financial joined us to discuss. #AI #artificialintelligence #drake #theweeknd #veronicadudo #LesBorsai #music #popartists #UniversalMusicGroup

World

Who is running for the 2024 GOP Presidential nomination?

Published

42 mins ago

June 2, 2023

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The 2024 Presidential GOP field continues to grow.

While everyone is hoping to persuade Republicans to favor them over former President Donald Trump–he continues to lead the pack.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis kicked off his 2024 presidential campaign with his first public appearance in Iowa.

He joins others including Senator Tim Scott and former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley.

The field is expected to expand even more as reports suggest that both former Vice President Mike Pence and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie will enter the primary race soon.

However, everyone is hoping to persuade Republicans to favor them over former President Donald Trump who continues to enjoy very high poll numbers.

U.S. Congressman Jeff Van Drew joined us to discuss.
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Is the U.S. debt deal bad fiscal policy?

Published

56 mins ago

June 2, 2023

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While President Joe Biden and Republican leadership came to an agreement on the debt limit—some lawmakers say the fiscal policy is a bad deal and does not rein in spending.

The executive branch and Congress tried to strike a deal about the debt limit as the country marched closer to defaulting.

The Treasury has been warning that the government could run out of money sometime in the beginning of June and would likely default on some bills if Congress does not raise the debt ceiling.

Democrats have insisted on raising the debt limit without preconditions.

But, Republicans say President Joe Biden and the Democrats are playing Russian roulette with America’s economy after a two-year spending binge that brought 40-year high inflation and pushed the nation’s debt to over $31-trillion.

While President Biden and Republican leadership came to an agreement on the debt limit—many lawmakers say the fiscal policy is a bad deal and does not rein in spending.

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