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Helmi is a Research Affiliate of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society. His research focuses on Internet and media freedom, censorship, and the depth and breadth of information controls hindering political and social inclusion and the work of media and civil society organizations in the Middle East and North Africa region at the national, subregional and regional levels.

Helmi monitors, analyzes, and maps the political, social, and idealogical discussions on social media, and identifies trends, communities, and key communicators. He examines how politically and socially vulnerable groups make use of the networked information economy and analyzes the content, discourse and structure of their communities online.

He explores the intersection of technology and political and social engagements, how the use of the Internet defies the social and political structures, and the potential systemic changes cyberspace can bring to real space.

As a Fulbright Scholar, Helmi received a Master's degree in Communications, Computing, and Technology & Education from Columbia University.


Projects & Tools

Internet Monitor

Internet Monitor's aim is to evaluate, describe, and summarize the means, mechanisms, and extent of Internet content controls and Internet activity around the world.

OpenNet Initiative

A collaborative project between the Citizen Lab at the Munk School of Global Affairs, University of Toronto; the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University; and…


Publications

Publication
Jan 16, 2019

Internet Censorship and the Intraregional Geopolitical Conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa

How do adversarial relationships between states translate into Internet censorship practices?

Publication
Feb 28, 2018

The Yemen War Online: Propagation of Censored Content on Twitter

This study documents and analyzes the sharing of information on Twitter among different political groups related to the ongoing conflict in Yemen. 

Aug 14, 2017

Perspectives on Harmful Speech Online

This collection of short essays and opinion pieces on harmful speech online covers a broad spectrum of thought and ideas from the Berkman Klein community.

Jun 29, 2017

The Shifting Landscape of Global Internet Censorship

An Uptake in Communications Encryption Is Tempered by Increasing Pressure on Major Platform Providers; Governments Expand Content Restriction Tactics

Documenting the practice of Internet censorship around the world through empirical testing of the availability of the world’s most-trafficked and influential websites.

Publication
Mar 9, 2016

Mobilization for Change

The role of the networked public sphere in advancing civic participation and collective action in the Arab region

“Mobilization for Change” is a series of reports examining the role of the networked public sphere in advancing civic participation and collective action in the Arab region.

Publication
Dec 10, 2015

Openness and Restraint

Structure, Discourse, and Contention in Saudi Twitter

"Openness and Restraint" maps and analyzes the structure and content of the Saudi Twittersphere and identifies the communities that coalesce around different political, religious,…

Feb 5, 2015

Arab Religious Skeptics Online

Anonymity, Autonomy, and Discourse in a Hostile Environment

"Arab Religious Skeptics Online: Anonymity, Autonomy, and Discourse in a Hostile Environment," authored by Helmi Noman, is the sixth paper in the Internet Monitor special report…


News

News
Feb 5, 2019

Several countries turn off the internet when discontent smolders

An increasing number of countries are preventing citizens from reporting censurable conditions.


Community

BBC News

Minecraft ‘loophole’ library of banned journalism

BKC affiliate Helmi Noman weighs in on a library filled with articles by censored journalists, hosted in the game Minecraft

Mar 14, 2020
Foreign Policy in Focus

Digital Authoritarianism Is Rising in the Middle East

Internet Monitor paper offers insight into current events

Aug 20, 2019

Events

Apr 4, 2006 @ 12:30 PM

Internet in the Arab World: A Catalyst for Power Shift

Helmi Noman

Helmi Noman discussed how access to information via the internet defies the traditional information paradigm in "Internet in the Arab World: A Catalyst for Power Shift."