IP Democracy: More on China and Censorship

My obvious less-than-positive feelings toward American companies’ complicity with the Chinese government’s censorship regime has triggered many heartfelt emails from individuals and groups who share my views. I have received a number of requests that I blog on particular articles or situations, and I regret that I cannot accomodate them all. If I did, this blog would become the China&Censorship forum.

But I will flag two articles sent to me. Hampton Stephens at TCS Daily wrote this piece yesterday in which he concluded that censorship in China is doomed to fail.

However, unfortunately for Hu [Chinese Premier Hu Jintao] and his Chinese Communist Party, and to the benefit of Gates and the rest of the American computer industry, which no doubt would love to do business in China without an authoritarian regime looking over its shoulder, the success of Chinese Internet censorship is bound to be short-lived. In the long run, the Chinese government’s efforts are likely to fail because of the sheer magnitude of its task. China’s censorship regime cannot possibly keep up with the dramatic growth in the number of Chinese Internet users and the resulting rise in the ranks of those actively working to subvert government control. Thus, the existence of the Internet will be a persistent and growing thorn in the side of the Chinese Communist Party.

Michael Shtender-Auerbach of The Century Foundation has this essay today noting that Google has rebranded itself in China, with a new, more mellifluous name, which he finds ironic, to say the least.

Last week in Beijing, Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google announced a re-branding of the company’s Chinese search engine (http://www.google.cn). Since its launch in January 2006, Google China has been dubbed “Gou Gou,” which means “old dog.” In a move to appear more in line with Chinese rural traditions, the new name “Gu Ge,” which means “valley song,” is meant to illustrate a “fruitful and rewarding experience.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Google China will be censored in accordance with the laws of the Chinese government. As of last week the General Administration of Press and Publications (GAPP), the department of media censorship in Beijing, has stepped up its efforts to shut down any media outlet, including blogs, chat rooms, television, magazines, and news Web sites that publish or discuss what the government concludes is “unhealthy” or “perverted” content.

Posted by Cynthia Brumfield on April 20, 2006 1:07 PM to IP Democracy