China announces stricter internet censorship
China has announced a tightening of its internet censorship. At a meeting, several government agencies announced a tougher crackdown on major websites and search engines such as Baidu and Google.
China has announced a tightening of its internet censorship. A report on the official news website China.com.cn on Monday states that a nationwide campaign is planned "to cleanse the internet of an ordinary current". Lawbreakers would face severe penalties. The Financial Times reported on Monday that the Chinese government is currently equipping censors with better filtering software to detect banned content.
According to the news website, several government authorities have announced a crackdown on major websites and search engines such as Baidu and Google at a meeting. State television reported that 19 internet operators and sites had not removed "tasteless" content quickly enough and had ignored warnings from censors. It showed images of officials carrying digital devices from an unknown office. There are almost 300 million registered internet users in China, many of them teenagers. Baidu dominates the Chinese search engine market with around two thirds of users. Global market leader Google ranks second in China.
The Chinese Communist Party fears losing control over the information it disseminates and is therefore making great efforts to remove political criticism, pornography and scams from the internet. In view of the cooling economy and a series of upcoming politically sensitive anniversaries, the party is currently stepping up its efforts to suppress dissenting opinions and protests.
According to the news website, several government authorities have announced a crackdown on major websites and search engines such as Baidu and Google at a meeting. State television reported that 19 internet operators and sites had not removed "tasteless" content quickly enough and had ignored warnings from censors. It showed images of officials carrying digital devices from an unknown office. There are almost 300 million registered internet users in China, many of them teenagers. Baidu dominates the Chinese search engine market with around two thirds of users. Global market leader Google ranks second in China.
The Chinese Communist Party fears losing control over the information it disseminates and is therefore making great efforts to remove political criticism, pornography and scams from the internet. In view of the cooling economy and a series of upcoming politically sensitive anniversaries, the party is currently stepping up its efforts to suppress dissenting opinions and protests.
