Media, Educators trained in New trends

"Islamic State" propaganda lured hundreds of Indonesians to fight for an extremist cause in Syria. One such Indonesian says the IS Islamic caliphate dream was flawed and that he wants to turn over a new leaf. He has joined a social media campaign to counter extremist narratives.

In an interview with FRANCE 24 at the Paris Peace Forum, US billionaire Frank McCourt strongly criticised tech giants, saying social media is "undermining our democracies". The owner of French football club Olympique de Marseille told us more about his Project Liberty plan. He has invested $100 million in the initiative, which he hopes will "transform the way the internet works".

Government critics said the proposed media law was aimed at silencing dissent. President Andrzej Duda said it would have dealt a blow to Poland's reputation as a place to do business.

Pro-democracy news site Citizen News said its decision to shut down came in response to the recent closure of Stand News. It is the third pro-democracy publication to cease operations in recent months.

Bullying at school, or "ijime", is a persistent problem in Japan. In 2020, there were 612,000 recorded cases at schools across the country – more than three times the number a decade ago. What begins as a joke among friends can end in insults and violence. Bullying leads to academic failure, isolation and, in some cases, suicide. Last year, 80 percent of Japanese schools reported bullying incidents. Our correspondents Louis Belin, Ryusuke Murata, Aruna Popuri and Justin McCurry report from Tokyo.

Journalists in Mexico are mourning the murder of another colleague – the fourth to be killed since the start of the year. They're being targeted for exposing corruption at the top. The government is under pressure to make it safer for them to do their job.

The fate of Muslims, women and the media are just three of the issues under the spotlight in India's regional elections. The state of Uttar Pradesh perhaps best sums up what's at stake. It has been ruled by PM Modi's Hindu nationalist BJP for the past five years but today, there's increasing concern for the rights of Muslims in particular. Our guests discuss what's at stake in these elections.

The Pakistani government's media watchdog has imposed a ban on "intimate" scenes on television amid growing religious conservativism in the country. Activists have decried the move.

Fear mongering content became viral on social media this week, as Ukrainian civilians prepare for an imminent Russian attack.

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos of different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Social media posts may seem insignificant when compared with the brutality on the ground in Ukraine, but what goes viral is directly affecting the war and Russia knows this. This Friday, the chairman of the Russian parliament Vyacheslav Volodin railed against foreign social media, calling it a "weapon" that Russia "must oppose". This comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky secured a series of victories against Russia on the international stage, thanks in no small part to his internet star power.