Censorship is not a new topic to the political realm in China, but recently the outcry for greater personal rights is getting some global attention. Since the ban on Twitter in China last year several incarnations have sprung up, the most recent of which is called Weibo. Weibo is a domestic micro-blog service that the regime has allowed to operate under the condition that several hundred censors monitor it at all times. Although still heavily censored, this change in internet use policy brings with it a means for large numbers of Chinese citizens to connect widely and rapidly.
Since the internet boom of the past ten years, several new sites and servers are allowing people to connect globally faster than ever before. Sadly this is not the case in China who has established heavy censorship on what can and cannot be accessed via the internet. This control is commonly reffed to as " The Great Firewall". This firewall is government operated and specifically targets certain key words that may emerge while someone is online. The government states that this is done in order to keep political activism and unrest at a minimum. The regime fears that open widespread information will undermine their political rule. While this is not the only media controlled by the government, it may be the most threatening.
Recent political activity has spurred some global news in China including the argument over governance of the South China Sea and the detention of Mr. Liu Xiaobo the winner of this years Nobel peace prize. From this global attention, many Chinese citizens are beginning to speak more openly on political matters, something that is aided by the use of the internet. Upon hearing of Liu Xiaobo's win, the economist reports that news spread very quickly through the use of these micro-blogs by users using codes or Latin characters to write Mr. Xiaobo's name, something the censors have difficulty tracking.
Journalists are also getting in on the idea when: "In September several tweeted live on the plight of two women who were hiding in an airport lavatory in Jiangxi province. Officials were trying to prevent them flying to Beijing to issue complaints to the central authorities."-Economist. This is free exchange of unadulterated information is a bold new step for personal speech in China and is sure to make some waves with the politically charged youth.
http://www.economist.com/node/17361444
http://www.economist.com/node/17309207
Video of Ai Weiwei, a prominent Chinese political activist and artist.
http://www.economist.com/node/21012193
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