Declaration of Internet Freedom

(Source: techdirt)

Net Law

The Chinese government is working on a plan to change the definition of "internet service providers" to include blogs, microblogs, and forums in an effort to end illegal activity and develop "trust" online. Ultimately the plan would require that netizens register for these newly defined services using their real identities before being able to post content to the web. Also included would be provisions requiring these websites to hold onto their records and logs and cooperate when asked to turn them over to the police.

Full story from BBC News.

Ai Weiwei and Web Censorship

Renowned artist Ai Weiwei, who is being held in China under house arrest, released an article in the Guardian about the Chinese government and their attempts at web censorship. To Mr. Ai, "the government computer has one button: delete."

Ai argues that the internet has given the Chinese people a new sense of freedom, one that is not offered by the state and one that can not so easily be taken away. "The papers try to talk about things, but even before they appear, everyone has talked about it on the internet." For once, he argues, the people of China have another source of media other than those which are state-run and netizens can exercise their own judgement about current events.

Even Ai cannot believe how much has changed in recent years due to social media and the spread of mass voices online through blogs and microblogs. But Mr. Ai believes that it is becoming more difficult for the Communist Party to control the internet and censor the voices of netizens. "Censorship is saying: "I'm the one who says the last sentence. Whatever you say, the conclusion is mine." But the internet is like a tree that is growing. The people will always have the last word – even if someone has a very weak, quiet voice."

Online Discussion Amid Censorship

Amid the Bo Xilai scandal that is currently rocking China's government, netziens in China are finding ways to discuss and dissect the news even as the Communist Party steps up its censorship of all online material related to Bo Xilai. The scandal of late involves prominent Bo Xilai (who was slated for a high government position) who was recently removed from his post after failing to adequately address the Wang Lijun incident. Furthermore, his wife was just investigated into the death of a British national who was caught up in this affair.

Netizens are using methods to bypass government filtering on micro-blogs and web forums, using keywords that represent figures in the scandal instead of using their real names - which are heavily targeted and taken down by online censoring. While the government continues its censorship over the issue, the BBC notes that it appears that most of the posts "praise" the actions of Beijing. Beijing released a commentary urging the people to support the government's actions as this controversy is investigated and cleared by the government. Wang Feng of the Brookings-Tsinghua Centre for Public Policy said "for the last 30 years this is the biggest scandal we can think of" calling it "unprecedented" in Chinese modern history.

China Mirco-Blogs Back Online

Micro-blogging websites were frozen in China for two days after rumors and posts about a coup in Beijing were discovered by the government. While the reports were speculated as being rumors, it appears from the BBC's article that rumors spread around the Chinese internet because there is no mainstream outlet for rumors to thrive such as in America. Furthermore, Beijing appears to be having a difficult time appointing top government officials as it reshuffles its government this year.

I touched upon this tabloid sensation briefly in my research - that a lack of gossip tabloids in China fuels the internet as becoming a space where rumors begin and grow uncontrolled. The state's media bans tabloid and sensationalist gossip from being published, but it finds a home on these web forums where those who in the past have been targets of the HFSE gain notoriety and "web space" as quickly as Hollywood film stars. And this phenomenon because all the more dangerous because discerning truth from fiction on the internet can be near impossible.