YouTube May Be Banned in Russia Over Anti-Muslim Movie

Unlocking Word Meanings
Read the following words/expressions found in today’s article.

1. controversial (adj.) [kon-truh-vur-shuh l] – causing a public discussion or disagreement

Example: The controversial newspaper article attacked different religious beliefs.

2. trailer (n.) [trey-ler] – a short promotional video of a new film

Example: Trailers of the upcoming movie thrilled many teenagers. 

3. depict (v.) [dih-pikt] – to describe someone or something in writing, painting, drawing or film

Example: He was depicted as a loving father in the movie.

4. abide by (phrasal verb) [uh-bahyd] [bahy] – to obey or to follow

Example: People must abide by the government rules.

5. verdict (n.) [vur-dikt] – judgment or opinion

Example: The host announced the judges’ verdict in the contest.

Article
Read the text below.

Google’s video-sharing site YouTube may be blocked in Russia unless it removes the controversial anti-Islamic film that caused violent reactions from many Muslims around the world. Muslims were depicted as immoral and violent people in the trailer of the US-produced film entitled “Innocence of Muslims.” Islamic believers and followers were offended and angered by the film’s concept. Worried that this will cause protest and violence among Russian Muslims, the Russian court ordered the film to be removed. Failure to abide by the order will result to the complete banning of the site in Russia, said Communications Minister Nikolai Nikiforov. Google did not say whether they would follow the order or not. According to the company, they only remove and restrict access to videos which violate rules of a certain country.  Google firmly believes in people’s right to have freedom of speech. Meanwhile, the anti-Islamic video cannot be accessed in several countries such as India, Indonesia, Libya and Egypt. The US government also asked YouTube to review the video according to the company’s policies. YouTube’s verdict was not to remove the video because it does not violate any of their rules.

Viewpoint Discussion

Enjoy a discussion with your tutor. 

Discussion A

·         Do you agree that the anti-Islamic film should be removed from YouTube? Why or why not?

·         What types of videos do you think should be removed from YouTube? Please explain your answers.

Discussion B

·         Do you think freedom of speech should also have boundaries? Why or why not?

·         What should be the limitations of a person’s right to freedom of speech?

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