Roger Simon summarizes the censorship problems. The Wall Street Journal reports on the various ways that Chinese bloggers are trying to keep one step ahead of the authorities:
The government requires users of cybercafes to register with their state-issued ID cards on each visit, but some users avoid cybercafe registration by paying off owners. In response, the government has installed video cameras in some cafes and shut others.
China expert and Global Voices guru Rebecca MacKinnon supplies a fascinating and comprehensive look at the issue. Seems Beijing fears the rise of fast-moving, tech-savvy "smartmobs". While bloggers are doing their bit to spread free speech, bulletin boards and chatrooms play a bigger role at the moment:
Should the regime be nervous about these technologies? You bet. After all, just a short flight away from Beijing in Seoul, South Korea sits a President who was elected thanks to a grassroots youth political movement ...which couldn't have been successful without the mobilizing power of chatrooms and SMS text messaging.
Encouraging news. MacKinnon, though, doesn't let her hopes run away with her:
The Chinese government has very good reason to be scared of flashmobs and I very much doubt they'll succeed in preventing them in the future. Flashmobs could indeed bring the government down if they get big enough and out of control. But flashmobs can't incubate a generation of leaders capable of democratic governance. On the other hand, mobs are very good at crowning new demagogues to replace the old ones.
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