Committee to Protect Bloggers (from Phil)

In what looks like a blogosphere equivalent of Human Rights Watch, the Committee to Protect Bloggers has set up shop. Its tools include petitions, a list of Endangered Bloggers, a way to "adopt a blog," and a list of resources.

Given the precarious nature of press freedom all over the globe, this looks like a worthwhile project. There are editors supervising the oversight of blogs in different countries, and one recent report on the State of the African Blogosphere included this insight:

There is no telling how many blogs there are in the African blogosphere. There are indications that some African countries have several hundreds of bloggers. The Kenyan, South African, and Egyptian webrings boast over 350 blogs each. However, some African countries do not to have blogs dedicated to them.

BlogAfrica, Global Voices, and My Africa are good in roads into the African blogosphere.

Many African bloggers do so at great personal risk. Since they write from countries whose leaders are intent on prohibiting public knowledge of their nefarious activities, some of Africa’s bloggers are forced underground.

Aside from helping to protect bloggers, this CPB blog looks like a good place to learn more about the state of civil liberties around the globe. Check it out!