BURMA: Burma Cyclone blog launched

As we learned during the tsunami of 2004, blogs can be particularly helpful in spreading information about major disasters. A group of Columbia Journalism School students who had spent almost eight months documenting the lives of Burmese refugees in New York for their Master's Project [http://FromBurmaToNewYork.com/], have now built a useful blog about the Burma cyclone - the death toll appears to have crossed 100,000 now.

On the blog you will find everything from the latest news to how you can contribute directly to the victims to information about candelight vigils.

Please visit: http://BurmaEmergency.wordpress.com/

You can contact the students, Divya Gupta, Karen Zraick and Lam Thuy Vo, via divyagupta2[at]gmail.com

They are looking for journalists and others to contribute items.

Help them spread the word - and post your comments on their blog or below.

Earlier on SAJAforum:

• Coverage of the cyclone by Anup Kaphle

Comments

[Raj RD]

I understand the lack of proper and timely warning system is the cause for such a high number of causalities, which could have been minimized. I wonder what is the level of warning system in place for costal cities/towns in India compared to other developed countries.

[Jaya Kamlani]

“Leader of GOP convention quits after Myanmar ties reported”
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080510/ap_on_el_pr/gop_convention_resignation

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The man picked by the John McCain campaign to run the 2008 Republican National Convention resigned Saturday after a report that his lobbying firm used to represent the military regime in Myanmar. Doug Goodyear resigned as convention coordinator and issued a two sentence statement:

"Today I offered the convention my resignation so as not to become a distraction in this campaign. I continue to strongly support John McCain for president, and wish him the best of luck in this campaign."

Goodyear, chief executive of lobbying firm DCI Group, resigned a few hours after Newsweek posted a story posted online that the company was paid $348,000 in 2002 and 2003 to represent Myanmar's junta.

Jaya Kamlani