civil war

Firms Seek Supply Route Around Conflict in Congo

Devon Maylie, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in News on April 27, 2011 at 4:45 am PT

While the aftermath of the Japanese earthquake is causing many companies to worry about the electronics supply chain, a different pall is hovering over a rare, blue-gray metal that is mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Headless Lawsuit in Topless Blog!

Kara Swisher in News on April 14, 2011 at 8:46 am PT

On some level of journalism, I guess anything could happen. But does that mean it should? Some sensational stories in tech of late have led to some even more sensational reporting.

For Shame: The Congo Nightmare Continues

Kara Swisher in News on August 11, 2009 at 9:09 am PT

Eve Ensler, playwright, activist and creator of V-Day, appeared at the the seventh D: All Things Digital conference in late May to talk about the links between what goes into making mobile phones and human rights violations. There, she shed much needed light on the dire situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, where some of the worst atrocities are now being committed on the population in a terrible civil war. She predicted it would get worse without massive international intervention. Tragically, she was right.

V-Day Founder Eve Ensler: The Full D7 Session

Kara Swisher in D7 on June 18, 2009 at 10:04 pm PT

Onstage in an interview at the seventh D: All Things Digital conference, Eve Ensler shed much-needed light on the dire situation in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Ensler’s aim is to end the use of rape as a weapon of war there, in part as a consequence of the region’s coltan trade. Coltan, or columbite tantalite, is a mineral essential to the manufacture of a wide array of consumer electronics, such as mobile phones and laptops. It is well worth hearing about exactly how some of our everyday gadgets come to us at a terrible price.

V-Day Founder Eve Ensler: The Full D7 Session

Kara Swisher in D7 on June 18, 2009 at 12:21 am PT

Onstage in an interview at the seventh D: All Things Digital conference, Eve Ensler shed much-needed light on the dire situation in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Ensler’s aim is to end the use of rape as a weapon of war there, in part as a consequence of the region’s coltan trade. Coltan, or columbite tantalite, is a mineral essential to the manufacture of a wide array of consumer electronics, such as mobile phones and laptops. It is well worth hearing about exactly how some of our everyday gadgets come to us at a terrible price.