Censorship Resumes

01/02/2009		Censorship Resumes
Home History Games News Dictionary		Since the closure of the 2008 Beijing Olympics this fall, Chinese authorities have resumed censorship of the World Wide Web. A number of universally respected news sources have been reported to have fallen victim to the control, and this week marked another news resource being added to the ranks. According to the New York Times, no Chinese citizen was able to gain access to their online newspaper last Friday. The block was confirmed by Reuters news service, though the Chinese State Information Office has been apparently unable to give any information as to why, denying even any knowledge of such a block. Chinese internet users in major cities like Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing were denied access to the New York Times for all of Friday and into late Saturday, receiving the message that the website was unavailable. Site accessibility resumed within the protection of VPNs (virtual private networks.) Chinese law permits the State to block any sites that the government deems contain inappropriate, illegal, or unsuitable content. Other major news sources that have been blocked this month include Ming Pao News out of Hong Kong, the BBC and Voice of America versions in Chinese dialects, as well as AsiaWeek. The Chinese government has a department dedicated to warning too-liberal bloggers, and removing any ‘sensitive’ posts or content. The blatant infringement upon freedoms of speech and expression, as well as ‘Big Brother’ attitude have caused comparisons between Chinese law, and the Kentucky attempts to seize online casino domain names.

01/02/2009

Censorship Resumes

Since the closure of the 2008 Beijing Olympics this fall, Chinese authorities have resumed censorship of the World Wide Web. A number of universally respected news sources have been reported to have fallen victim to the control, and this week marked another news resource being added to the ranks.

According to the New York Times, no Chinese citizen was able to gain access to their online newspaper last Friday. The block was confirmed by Reuters news service, though the Chinese State Information Office has been apparently unable to give any information as to why, denying even any knowledge of such a block. Chinese internet users in major cities like Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Beijing were denied access to the New York Times for all of Friday and into late Saturday, receiving the message that the website was unavailable. Site accessibility resumed within the protection of VPNs (virtual private networks.)

Chinese law permits the State to block any sites that the government deems contain inappropriate, illegal, or unsuitable content. Other major news sources that have been blocked this month include Ming Pao News out of Hong Kong, the BBC and Voice of America versions in Chinese dialects, as well as AsiaWeek. The Chinese government has a department dedicated to warning too-liberal bloggers, and removing any ‘sensitive’ posts or content. The blatant infringement upon freedoms of speech and expression, as well as ‘Big Brother’ attitude have caused comparisons between Chinese law, and the Kentucky attempts to seize online casino domain names.