Notes

Minecraft 'loophole' Library Of Banned Journalism

Minecraft 'loophole' library of banned journalism Tom Gerken BBC News, Washington DC



13 March 2020



It began as an online forum and has since become the most played video game ever. But , today Minecraft is being played in ways that its creator could not have imagined.



The game of legends that revolves on the concept of putting Lego-like blocks together with more than 145 million players each month has been turned into a hub of free speech.



To host journalistic articles who were censored online A virtual library was designed with care.



You will find the work of Jamal Khashoggi (the journalist who was murdered by Saudi agents in 2018) in addition to a variety of other books at the library.



Minecraft has declined to comment.



Reporters Without Borders, a non-profit organisation that aims to protect the freedom of information throughout the world, created the project. Blockworks, the design studio that is responsible for the Minecraft library, developed it.



Christian Mihr, the executive director of Reporters Without Borders Germany, said that Minecraft was a worthy project because he doesn't believe it is an affront to governments that censor their media.



"We have chosen Minecraft because of its reach," he said. It is available in every nation. It is not censored like other games suspected to be political.



"There are large communities in every country included, which is why it was suggested - it's a way to circumvent the censorship."



The authors were chosen to represent countries where press freedom was restricted to ensure that members of those communities would be able to access their work.



He also clarified that permissions must be sought prior to publishing in a library.



"We have not uploaded any material into the library without the permission of the author in the event that they're still alive.



"In the Jamal Khashoggi's case, we have spoken to family members - in respect of people who have been killed, and the safety of their families."



Nick Feamster, Neubauer Professor of Computer Science, at the University of Chicago, stated to the BBC that the library was able to beat censors, but was concerned about the response of the government.



"It's an interesting idea," he said, "But I think there are some issues to be resolved. Governments will know about this - the articles are going all over the internet. It's not foolproof against a determined enemy.



He stated that the library's strength was due to the use of Entanglement, which is the mixing of censored content and video games in the eyes of the editors.



"By linking these two things you make them share content," he said. Irc101 "You can't censor this one without the other."



Helmi Noman who is a Research Affiliate at the Berkman Klein Centre for Internet & Society, stated that he believed the library would have a limited audience.



He added that "censored content is constantly changing and diverse" and that people prefer methods that don't pre-select or compartmentalize content in specific areas online.



"Any strategy that doesn't result in an unhindered and secure browsing experience of the entire internet including social media, social media and direct messaging applications will probably be unsuccessful."



Due to the number of players trying to log in simultaneously, the server could not be regularly accessed. It has been visited by 3,889 players from 75 different countries. It has been downloaded more than 7700 times.



After two hours of searching, BBC finally visited the virtual library and asked its users what they thought.



SoulfulGenie said that they believed it needed more books and one on North Korea. Another user called it "ingenious" and claimed that the library could be downloaded and reuploaded again by other users. "It is easy to duplicate and, therefore, difficult to destroy."



ReduxPL said that the library "looks amazing indeed".



Blockworks took 250 hours to create the library, which was completed by 24 people from 16 different countries.



James Delaney, the company's managing director, stated to the BBC that the company's goal was to create a classic design that was "on the edge of fantasy".



"It is plausible as a real building," he said, "but it is pushing the boundaries of what is possible.



"We went for a design in the neoclassical style. It's similar to the British Museum and public libraries in New York."



In spite of these influences, he claimed Minecraft was an improvisational game at its core, so the builders were not limited to pre-defined plans.



He explained that when there are many people working on the same project, "people can see each others' work and have to react in real-time." This is a highly reactive way of working, and it can alter the appearance of the project.



"The style is chosen to symbolize power and authority We wanted to flip this on its head.



"Instead of representing the power of the government or regime it's representing the freedom of the press."



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