Posts Tagged with ‘censorship’

We have already heard voices in the blogosphere that media people (both bloggers and reporters from traditional media outlets) should be cautious about how we cover various economic events in these hard times as we are partly responsible for what our readers will think and how they will behave. And since it is hardly arguable that the financial crisis is partly due to panic and irrational behavior of traders and investors, this issue definitely deserves our attention and consideration from [...]

The news from Bangkok today is that Thai government is planning a large-scale campaign to block websites denouncing the much-beloved Thai monarchy, the king himself and the members of the royal family.
Thailand is known for similar actions in the past when the country’s government blocked access to YouTube in 2007 because of a video clip mocking the King of the nation. But this time the campaign is going to be much more noticeable as the government will spend an amount [...]

Over this week we've been listening to the discussions about international media demanding that the Chinese government rethinks its position on blocking a number of websites that were (and most certainly still are) considered by the government as hazardous to their citizens and their states of mind. What we see now is that under this pressure China is simply forced to lift the restrictions to a certain extent - the extent that can be viewed as acceptable by [...]

If Web 2.0 is about social media and user-generated content, then with it comes a certain responsibility. Forget making sure that bloggers get paid a fair wage or getting your fair share of venture capital; the most important part of Web 2.0 is the ability to share information.
If you believe that is true, then you believe that Web 2.0 information sharing is a global obligation. I know that I do, and am always pleased when I see technology that [...]

One unpopular prime minister, John Howard, was ousted in Australia’s November ’06 election for his unwavering support for Operation Iraqi Destruction. His replacement, Kevin Rudd, is now under fire not two months into his first term for an initiative which would enact the filtration of the nation’s entire Internet backbone, much to the apparent anger and dismay of its citizens.
The filter’s purpose? To put a halt to rampant nakedness. Literally.
It’s been just a short while since word first crept about [...]

We’re all aware of China’s affinity for censorship. Well, actually, the Chinese government’s affinity for censorship, to be more accurate. Whether its eyes are on the nation’s print news industry, its booming digital media space, or public displays of disaffection, the ruling party and its expansive and very loyal ranks of law enforcers enjoy keeping things as nice, tidy, and uniformly in line with their concepts of allegiance and order as possible.
And let’s face it, a good number of folk [...]

Reuters, having very recently documented the mere purchase of an Internet domain by Facebook, effectively opened a large window into the mind of the chief executive of the Web’s second-largest social network.
The name in profile is, very simply: 'Facebook.cn'.
The suffix tells you everything, doesn’t it? Yes, Facebook is now revealed to have made itself the owner of a China-compatible Web address, which it is quite likely to use as, well, the gateway for its future Asian operations. Obviously.
Why [...]

Though it never made the ‘big' news, Italy's latest foray into the bloggosphere is indicative of some rather strange thinking from their leaders. Prime Minister Romano Prodi's undersecretary Franco Levi composed the text to a law that requires anyone with a website or blog to register with the ROC (register of the Communication Authority). Site and blog owners will also be required to submit documentation, pay a tax and provide a letter of intent as to making any money. The [...]

Chinese President Hu Jintao launched a campaign on Monday to rid the country of "unhealthy" content and utilize the Web as a springboard for Communist Party doctrine. Actually, the news of late has been headed towards this situation as Chinese officials have blamed the Internet of everything from youth violence and crime to Genghis Kahn's invasion from Mongolia.
In news from Reuters via Yahoo! state television reported that the 24 member Communist Party Politburo discussed cleaning up the Internet and [...]