Nico links to the presser just co-released by a number of senators, including leads McCain, Liberman and Graham, Casey, Kaufman and others.

Important bits:

• Authorizes $30 million to the Broadcasting Board of Governors to expand Farsi language broadcasting into Iran by Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty’s Radio Farda and the Voice of America’s Persian News Network. The funds may be used to develop additional transmission capability to counter Iranian government efforts to jam radio, satellite, and Internet-based transmissions; establish additional proxy server capability and anti-censorship software to counter efforts to block access to websites in Iran; develop technologies to counter efforts to block SMS text message exchange over cellular phone networks; and hire, on a permanent or short-term basis, additional staff for Radio Farda and the Persian News Network.

• Authorizes $20 million for a new “Iranian Electronic Education, Exchange, and Media Fund,” which will support the development of technologies, including websites, that will aid the ability of the Iranian people to gain access to and share information; counter efforts to block, censor, or monitor the Internet in Iran; and engage in Internet-based education programs and other exchanges with Americans online.

• Requires a report by the President on non-Iranian companies, including corporations with U.S. subsidiaries, that have aided the Iranian government’s Internet censorship efforts, including by providing deep packet inspection technology.

Entire text of the bill, courtesy of THOMAS at the Library of Congress, after the jump:

Subtitle D–VOICE Act

SEC. 1241. SHORT TITLE.

This subtitle may be cited as the “Victims of Iranian Censorship Act”or the “VOICE Act”.

SEC. 1242. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

It is the sense of Congress that the United States–

(1) respects the sovereignty, proud history, and rich culture of the Iranian people;

(2) respects the universal values of freedom of speech and freedom of the press in Iran and throughout the world;

(3) supports the Iranian people as they take steps to peacefully express their voices, opinions, and aspirations;

(4) supports the Iranian people seeking access to news and other forms of information;

(5) condemns the detainment, imprisonment, and intimidation of all journalists, in Iran and elsewhere throughout the world;

(6) supports journalists who take great risk to report on political events in Iran, including those surrounding the presidential election;

(7) supports the efforts the Voice of America’s (VOA) 24-hour television station Persian News Network, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s (RFE/RL) Radio Farda 24-hour radio station; British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Farsi language programming; Radio Zamaneh; and other independent news outlets to provide information to Iran;

(8) condemns acts of censorship, intimidation, and other restrictions on freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom of expression in Iran and throughout the world;

(9) commends companies which have facilitated the ability of the Iranian people to access and share information, and exercise freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly through alternative technologies; and

(10) condemns companies which have knowingly impeded the ability of the Iranian people to access and share information and exercise freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly through electronic media, including through the sale of technology that allows for deep packet inspection or provides the capability to monitor or block Internet access, and gather information about individuals.

SEC. 1243. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

It shall be the policy of the United States–

(1) to support freedom of the press, freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly in Iran;

(2) to support the Iranian people as they seek, receive, and impart information and promote ideas in writing, in print, or through any media without interference;

(3) to discourage businesses from aiding efforts to interfere with the ability of the people of Iran to freely access or share information or otherwise infringe upon freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the press through the Internet or other electronic media, including through the sale of deep packet inspection or other technology to the Government of Iran that provides the capability to monitor or block Internet access, and gather information about individuals; and

(4) to encourage the development of technologies, including Internet Web sites that facilitate the efforts of the Iranian people–

(A) to gain access to and share accurate information and exercise freedom of speech, freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of the press, through the Internet or other electronic media; and

(B) engage in Internet-based education programs and other exchanges between United States citizens and Iranians.

SEC. 1244. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(a) International Broadcasting Operations Fund.–In addition to amounts otherwise authorized for the Broadcasting Board of Governors’ International Broadcasting Operations Fund, there is authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 to expand Farsi language programming and to provide for the dissemination of accurate and independent information to the Iranian people through radio, television, Internet, cellular telephone, short message service, and other communications.

(b) Broadcasting Capital Improvements Fund.–In addition to amounts otherwise authorized for the Broadcasting Board of Governors’ Broadcasting Capital Improvements Fund, there is authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 to expand transmissions of Farsi language programs to Iran.

(c) Use of Amounts.–In pursuit of the objectives described in subsections (a) and (b), amounts in the International Broadcasting Operations Fund and the Capital Improvements Fund may be used to–

(1) develop additional transmission capability for Radio Farda and the Persian News Network to counter ongoing efforts to jam transmissions, including through additional shortwave and medium wave transmissions, satellite, and Internet mechanisms;

(2) develop additional proxy server capability and anti-censorship software to counter efforts to block Radio Farda and Persian News Network Web sites;

(3) develop technologies to counter efforts to block SMS text message exchange over cellular phone networks;

(4) expand program coverage and analysis by Radio Farda and the Persian News Network, including the development of broadcast platforms and programs, on the television, radio and Internet, for enhanced interactivity with and among the people of Iran;

(5) hire, on a permanent or short-term basis, additional staff for Radio Farda and the Persian News Network; and

(6) develop additional Internet-based, Farsi-language television programming, including a Farsi-language, Internet-based news channel.

SEC. 1245. IRANIAN ELECTRONIC EDUCATION, EXCHANGE, AND MEDIA FUND.

(a) Establishment.–There is established in the Treasury of the United States the Iranian Electronic Education, Exchange, and Media Fund (referred to in this section as the “Fund”), consisting of amounts appropriated to the Fund pursuant to subsection (f).

(b) Administration.–The Fund shall be administered by the Secretary of State.

(c) Objective.–The objective of the Fund shall be to support the development of technologies, including Internet Web sites, that will aid the ability of the Iranian people to–

(1) gain access to and share information;

(2) exercise freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of assembly through the Internet and other electronic media;

(3) engage in Internet-based education programs and other exchanges between Americans and Iranians; and

(4) counter efforts–

(A) to block, censor, and monitor the Internet; and

(B) to disrupt or monitor cellular phone networks or SMS text exchanges.

(d) Use of Amounts.–In pursuit of the objective described in subsection (c), amounts in the Fund may be used for grants to United States or foreign universities, nonprofit organizations, or companies for targeted projects that advance the purpose of the Fund, including projects that–

(1) develop Farsi-language versions of existing social-networking Web sites;

(2) develop technologies, including Internet-based applications, to counter efforts–

(A) to block, censor, and monitor the Internet; and

(B) to disrupt or monitor cellular phone networks or SMS text message exchanges;

(3) develop Internet-based, distance learning programs for Iranian students at United States universities; and

(4) promote Internet-based, people-to-people educational, professional, religious, or cultural exchanges and dialogues between United States citizens and Iranians.

(e) Transfers.–Amounts in the Fund may be transferred to the United States Agency for International Development, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, or any other agency of the Federal Government to the extent that such amounts are used to carry out activities that will further the objective described in subsection (c).

(f) Authorization of Appropriations.–There is authorized to be appropriated $20,000,000 to the Fund.

SEC. 1246. ANNUAL REPORT.

(a) In General.–Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 5 years, the President shall submit a report to Congress that provides a detailed description of–

(1) United States-funded international broadcasting efforts in Iran;

(2) efforts by the Government of Iran to block broadcasts sponsored by the United States or other non-Iranian entities;

(3) efforts by the Government of Iran to monitor or block Internet access, and gather information about individuals;

(4) plans by the Broadcasting Board of Governors for the use of the amounts appropriated pursuant to section 1244, including–

(A) the identification of specific programs and platforms to be expanded or created; and

(B) satellite, radio, or Internet-based transmission capacity to be expanded or created;

(5) plans for the use of the Iranian Electronic Education, Exchange, and Media Fund;

(6) a detailed breakdown of amounts obligated and disbursed from the Iranian Electronic Media Fund and an assessment of the impact of such amounts;

(7) the percentage of the Iranian population and of Iranian territory reached by shortwave and medium-wave radio broadcasts by Radio Farda and Voice of America;

(8) the Internet traffic from Iran to Radio Farda and Voice of America Web sites; and

(9) the Internet traffic to proxy servers sponsored by the Broadcasting Board of Governors, and the provisioning of surge capacity.

(b) Classified Annex.–The report submitted under subsection (a) may include a classified annex.

[Page: S8049]

SEC. 1247. REPORT ON ACTIONS BY NON-IRANIAN COMPANIES.

(a) Study.–The President shall direct the appropriate officials to examine claims that non-Iranian companies, including corporations with United States subsidiaries, have provided hardware, software, or other forms of assistance to the Government of Iran that has furthered its efforts to–

(1) filter online political content;

(2) disrupt cell phone and Internet communications; and

(3) monitor the online activities of Iranian citizens.

(b) Report.–Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit a report to Congress that contains the results of the study conducted under subsection (a). The report submitted under this subsection shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

SEC. 1248. HUMAN RIGHTS DOCUMENTATION.

There are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 to the Secretary of State to document, collect, and disseminate information about human rights in Iran, including abuses of human rights that have taken place since the Iranian presidential election conducted on June 12, 2009.

For the uninitiated: Haystack is an awesome, new, anti-filtering software that’s custom-designed for Iran. It’s run out of San Francisco run by my new friend and green hat hacker extraordinaire, Austin Heap.

Haystack is moving along quite quickly — heck, they’ve even got a swank new website! — and in addition to donating money, you too can help in a really easy, but meaningful way, too:

If you’ve got a spare USB thumb drive (at least 128MB or greater), send ‘em in a plain envelope here:

The Haystack crew will be using these drives to safely get copies of the software inside Iran, to join the small handful of current Haystack users. It’s low-tech, but still pretty effective.

I’ve been informed that my radio piece on Haystack and the Dutch Parliament’s new technological support for Iran is airing today.

It will be available on any of these stations (and their Internet streams):

NYC – 3 pm Eastern – WNYC – 820 AM – www.wnyc.org
Washington, DC – 8 pm Eastern – WAMU – 88.5 FM – www.wamu.org
Los Angeles – 12 pm Pacific – KPCC – 89.3 FM – www.kpcc.opg
Boston – 4 pm Eastern – WGBH – 89.7 FM – www.wgbh.org
San Francisco – 2 pm Pacific – KQED – 88.5 FM – www.kqed.org

You can also find it on The World’s site later in the day and on my site if you miss the broadcast.

Also, don’t forget about The World’s Tech Podcast, hosted by my boss, Clark Boyd. It comes out every Friday.

Lemme know if you hear it!

Update: Audio is here.

Since Iran has been going nuts since the election, I’ve found myself glued to Twitter much more than before. I’ve used it to send out articles that I’ve found interesting, and get a handle on what people are talking about. More recently, I’ve used it to experiment with sending out photos of what I see when I’m out in the world.

I have my Flickr email address and my Twitpic address both in my iPhone, so that with a single email I can send my photo to both sides (and Facebook too, as I’ve integrated Twitter with it, too). Last night, I used it to take this snap of the latest example of hopejacking in my neighborhood here in Oakland.

Earlier this month, Flickr added a way to add photos to Twitter messages through its new Twitpic rival service, aptly name Flic.kr.

However, starting today, there’s a new way to tweet photos in your own Flickr library or other photos on the site. This feature makes sharing photos that much easier, which is pretty sweet. Simply add Flickr2Twitter to your account, authorize it, and off you go.

Now if only Twitter could somehow integrate itself with MMS, then we’d be totally, photographically, set.

The Iranophile blog “Is this Ta’arof?” shows how to use Greasemonkey and the new Google Translate tool to help better understand what’s being said in Persian on Twitter. Of course, Google’s translation ability is still in alpha, and likely isn’t 100 percent accurate, but it’s better than nothing. This should work on Windows, Mac or Linux equally well.

If you’re not techy and don’t understand the difference between a cup of java and JavaScript, fear not! This takes about a minute to set up once you’ve got the pieces in place and is super, super easy. (Seriously.)

I’ve adapted John’s instructions to make them a little more clear and a little easier.

So, here’s what you’ll need to download first:

[0) New version.]

1) Firefox browser. (If you have this already, then skip this step)

2) Greasemonkey. (This a really sweet Firefox plugin that lets you, as John writes: “allows you to customize web-pages with little bits of Javascript. Or, as Paul Boutin once wrote: “[lets you] modify webpages to suit your tastes.”) Again, if you already have this, you can skip this step.

3) Once you’ve got those squared away, go download my modified Google Translate script for Greasemonkey. This is the little bit of code that will do the translation for you. There probably will be a pop-up window asking if you want to install this script. You do.

In John’s version, he’ll tell you to go download the script from the official userscripts.org site. Then you’ll have to modify one line of code, as the script hasn’t been updated since Google added Persian.

But I’ve already done that for you, so you can download my already-modified version instead.

4) Now we’ve got to make a tiny change to the Google Translate script to make sure that it supports HTTPS. (If that doesn’t mean anything to you, then don’t fret over it.)

You can do this straightaway when the pop-up appears when you install the script. Or, you can go to the Tools menu, select “Greasemonkey” and then select “Manage User Scripts.” Or, you can right-click (that’s Ctrl-click for Mac people like me) the monkey icon in the lower right corner of your browser window and choose “Manage User Scripts.”

No matter how you do it, you should get a screen like this:

Click the “Add…” button and put in this line:

https://twitter.com/*

Do it again for:

https://*.twitter.com/*

Now there should be four lines in the “Included Pages” box as shown above.

5) Restart Firefox.

6) Login to Twitter. (This is important.)

7) Go to a Twitter page with Persian text on it, like:

http://twitter.com/mousavi1388
http://twitter.com/khorshid
http://twitter.com/khamenei_ir

VIII. Move your mouse over the Persian text. On the right side, under the Favorites star and the reply-to folded arrow should be a new, lower-case letter “t.” If you click that then you should get something like this:

NB: You can modify the script to default to a different source language. Also, this script works with any of the Google-supported target languages, which include Arabic, Korean and Estonian.

Any questions? Contact me.

Email is cfarivar [at] cfarivar [dot] org or find me on Twitter: @cfarivar

[via Poynter]

For example, today, I lent my Dutch and Finnish SIM cards to another English assistant who is going to those countries over the Christmas break. Both have < 10€ of credit on them (assuming they haven’t expired), and I can’t use them at all as I have no plans to go to either of those countries anytime soon.

And that got me wondering — why isn’t there a website/service, analogous to CouchSurfing or something, where I can temporarily borrow/swap a SIM card that I only need for a short time (say, a week or less), without having to pay much for it, or go through the hassle of buying a new phone number/SIM card. Before I came to France, I bought two used SIM cards on Craigslist in the Bay Area, and boy am I glad that I did, because new ones (at least from Orange) cost 15€ just for the card.

So, any enterprising web developer up for the challenge?

President:

* Abigail Adams: 2
* George Washington: 0
* Thomas Jefferson: 8
* Martha Washington: 0

Don’t believe me? Feel free to audit the tally or a ballot, here.

Thanks to all those who participated!

AdRants:

By continuously changing the names of their store networks to such things as OrderAnotherCoffeeAlready, BuyCoffeeForCuteGirlOverThere?, HaveYouTriedCoffeeCake?, BuyAnotherCupYouCheapskate, TodaysSpecialExpresso1.60Euro and BuyaLargeLatterGetBrownieForFree, the chain is able to both promote items as well as guilt patrons into realizing free WiFi really isn’t totally free.

Hilarity ensued when patrons would ask the barista what the name of the network was and the barista would shout, “OrderAnoterCoffeeAlready” or any of the other witty names.

Simple. Effective. Cost-efficient. What’s not to love?

I’d like it to be new/used, under $100, quad-band, and ideally with GPRS/EDGE support that lets me download POP email from anywhere I want.

Seems like the Motorola SLVR or the RIZR would fit the bill, but I’m willing to entertain other ideas.

I ended up buying a Motorola RIZR for $80 on craigslist.