China Launches Social Media Crackdown to Squelch News of Political Scandal and Dissident Escape
In the past few weeks, China has been trying to purge social media from references about a political scandal involving a high-ranking party official and blind-dissident Chen Guangcheng’s escape from house arrest to the U.S. Embassy. April began with a crack down on micro-blogging that included the arrest of over 1,000 people for “internet crimes,” for which Anonymous retaliated by hacking hundreds of Chinese government sites warning the Chinese government ” what you are doing today to your Great People, tomorrow will be inflicted to you.”
Nonetheless, China has continued to escalate its escalated its censorship of social media, which involves a reactive game of cat and mouse, this involves a reactive game of cat-and-mouse as Chinese netizens create new words to replace the now censored terms including banning references to the Shawshank Redemption (one of the best movies of the 1990s).. Also frustrating the Chinese government is Boxun.com, a Chinese language website launched in North Carolina by a Chinese expatriate that has seen a 155 increase in traffic during this period (but was taken down briefly by a massive DDos attack).
MORE INFO: China rushes to erase activist from social media (CBC News), China Censors Hamstrung by US Sites (Financial Times), Boxun.com claims crippled by China for exposing juicy details on Bo Xilai scandal (Chariweb), Chinese Government Reminds Netizens Who’s Boss (Tea Leaf Nation), Anonymous hacks Chinese websites (Al Jazeera).
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