7 Jan Chinese in rare protest outside newspaper over censorship Demons
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Re: 7 Jan Chinese in rare protest outside newspaper over censorship De
A serious test for Xi Jinping
How will China's new general secretary deal with a journalists' strike over free speech?
Closing the Chinese Communist Party's 18th congress in November, Xi Jinping – newly installed as general secretary – delivered a surprisingly trenchant attack on official corruption, warning that if left unchecked it could "kill the party and ruin the country". He was tapping into the popular mood. Jobbery and venality infect every level of the party and are a source of intense public resentment. A purge of corrupt officials ordered by the politburo, which has unearthed a rich harvest of sexual and financial scandals, has therefore been widely welcomed.
Mr Xi now faces a far trickier problem over free speech. Journalists at Southern Weekend, a liberal-leaning newspaper in Guangzhou, have walked out on strike in protest at heavy-handed censorship by the local "propaganda official" who refashioned a critical editorial calling for more respect for individual rights into a paean of praise for the regime. The striking journalists have been supported by crowds of demonstrators and by some prominent actresses using social media to broadcast the message to their many millions of online followers. It is arguably the most open and widespread display of dissent since the Tiananmen Square protests almost a quarter of a century ago.
This is Mr Xi's first serious test and early indications suggest that he is treading carefully. Demonstrations have been lightly policed and yesterday the People's Daily, the party's official outlet, said that propaganda officials should "follow the rhythm of the times" and help the authorities create a "pragmatic and open-minded image". On the face of it, this heralds a welcome and more tolerant official approach to the media. Whether or not it amounts to anything of substance will become clear in the next few days.
A serious test for Xi Jinping - Telegraph
************************
Three cheers for Mr Xi.
A serious test for Xi Jinping
How will China's new general secretary deal with a journalists' strike over free speech?
Closing the Chinese Communist Party's 18th congress in November, Xi Jinping – newly installed as general secretary – delivered a surprisingly trenchant attack on official corruption, warning that if left unchecked it could "kill the party and ruin the country". He was tapping into the popular mood. Jobbery and venality infect every level of the party and are a source of intense public resentment. A purge of corrupt officials ordered by the politburo, which has unearthed a rich harvest of sexual and financial scandals, has therefore been widely welcomed.
Mr Xi now faces a far trickier problem over free speech. Journalists at Southern Weekend, a liberal-leaning newspaper in Guangzhou, have walked out on strike in protest at heavy-handed censorship by the local "propaganda official" who refashioned a critical editorial calling for more respect for individual rights into a paean of praise for the regime. The striking journalists have been supported by crowds of demonstrators and by some prominent actresses using social media to broadcast the message to their many millions of online followers. It is arguably the most open and widespread display of dissent since the Tiananmen Square protests almost a quarter of a century ago.
This is Mr Xi's first serious test and early indications suggest that he is treading carefully. Demonstrations have been lightly policed and yesterday the People's Daily, the party's official outlet, said that propaganda officials should "follow the rhythm of the times" and help the authorities create a "pragmatic and open-minded image". On the face of it, this heralds a welcome and more tolerant official approach to the media. Whether or not it amounts to anything of substance will become clear in the next few days.
A serious test for Xi Jinping - Telegraph
************************
Three cheers for Mr Xi.
t_co
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Re: 7 Jan Chinese in rare protest outside newspaper over censorship De
This is a really interesting moment for China, since its old model of censorship is ill-suited to the multi-source narrowcast of social media (as opposed to the single-source broadcast model of old-line journalism). Xi should get out in front of the story and take charge with some firm steps to address the root issue here: playing whack-a-mole against the freewheeling Chinese media sector is less effective than simply adopting modern methods of PR and social media work. Xi could win sizeable amounts of liberal cred if he plays his cards right, while also bringing some of the more hotheaded media organizations back under the tent, so to speak, if he simply dismantled chunks of the censorship apparatus and let PR firms pick up the slack.
This is a really interesting moment for China, since its old model of censorship is ill-suited to the multi-source narrowcast of social media (as opposed to the single-source broadcast model of old-line journalism). Xi should get out in front of the story and take charge with some firm steps to address the root issue here: playing whack-a-mole against the freewheeling Chinese media sector is less effective than simply adopting modern methods of PR and social media work. Xi could win sizeable amounts of liberal cred if he plays his cards right, while also bringing some of the more hotheaded media organizations back under the tent, so to speak, if he simply dismantled chunks of the censorship apparatus and let PR firms pick up the slack.
amoy
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Re: 7 Jan Chinese in rare protest outside newspaper over censorship De
When I was in GD I read a lot of Nanfang, which's the best seller there probably with a brisk style, and a Cantonese column I liked. But gradually I came to have doubts if it lives up to the label "liberal leaning". Sometimes it sounds like a "rumour mill", or even a "retard" .
On China's political spetrum it's more like the extreme "right" wing - corresponding to Huffington Post :cool2: Vs. Global Times the leftist/nationalist. (Right/Left perhaps are reversed in the lexicon of China vs. of the West).
But like my spiritual leader @satish007 says: "I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
When I was in GD I read a lot of Nanfang, which's the best seller there probably with a brisk style, and a Cantonese column I liked. But gradually I came to have doubts if it lives up to the label "liberal leaning". Sometimes it sounds like a "rumour mill", or even a "retard" .
On China's political spetrum it's more like the extreme "right" wing - corresponding to Huffington Post :cool2: Vs. Global Times the leftist/nationalist. (Right/Left perhaps are reversed in the lexicon of China vs. of the West).
But like my spiritual leader @satish007 says: "I disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"
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sorcerer
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Re: 7 Jan Chinese in rare protest outside newspaper over censorship De
Press Freedom in China 'Deplorable': IFJ
An annual report on press freedom in China published this week by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has slammed the deteriorating situation for journalists working in China, and highlighted the increasingly active role mainland authorities are taking to exert influence on the press in Hong Kong and Macau.
"The state of press freedom and freedom of expression in China in 2014 was deplorable," IFJ Asia-Pacific said in its report, CHINA's MEDIA WAR: Censorship, Corruption & Control.
Among the significant developments highlighted by the IFJ:
Chinese authorities have also tightened their grip on the internet, with the establishment of the Central Internet Security and Informatization Leading Group in February 2014.
Although the leading group is ostensibly tasked with formulating China's cyber security strategy and developing the country into a "cyber power," subsequent security measures that were rolled out resulted in websites and blogs being shutdown, millions of posts being removed from social media platforms, and scores of arrests without charge, according to the IFJ.
Press freedom in Hong Kong, meanwhile, endured a "chilling" 2014.
Several journalists in Hong Kong were victims of intimidation and violent assaults, while a number of television, radio, and print outlets struggled with self-censorship due to internal and external pressure.
Two leading Hong Kong-based newspapers, Ming Pao and the Hong Kong Economic Journal, were accused of practicing self-censorship, along with Hong Kong's largest free-to-air television station, TVB, and public broadcaster RTHK.
In all cases upper management at these media groups was suspected of intervening in editorial decisions in order to avoid falling foul of authorities in China and Hong Kong – as well as influential advertisers – according to the IFJ.
Although mainstream media outlets in Hong Kong are loosely lumped into two camps – "pro-Beijing" and "pro-democracy" – the Occupy Central Movement triggered an unprecedented departure from editorial independence, with many Hong Kong media organizations accused of bias.
A survey of the public's trust in the media by the Chinese University of Hong Kong found that the credibility of the media had fallen to its lowest level since Hong Kong's return to China in 1997.
Robert Sullivan is a Hong Kong-based journalist. He covers energy for Interfax and writes on current affairs in China and Hong Kong. He received his Masters in Asia-Pacific Policy from the University of British Columbia.
Press Freedom in China 'Deplorable': IFJ | The Diplomat
Press Freedom in China 'Deplorable': IFJ
An annual report on press freedom in China published this week by the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) has slammed the deteriorating situation for journalists working in China, and highlighted the increasingly active role mainland authorities are taking to exert influence on the press in Hong Kong and Macau.
"The state of press freedom and freedom of expression in China in 2014 was deplorable," IFJ Asia-Pacific said in its report, CHINA's MEDIA WAR: Censorship, Corruption & Control.
Among the significant developments highlighted by the IFJ:
- China's regulator for state-owned media – the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film, and Television (SAPPRFT) – issued a directive in June specifying that journalists must not write "critical" stories without prior approval from their employers, and that journalists should not work "outside their assigned area of coverage."
- The SAPPRFT issued directives banning journalists from reporting on "state secrets, commercial secrets, unpublished information, and so on," and that journalists could not "reproduce, copy or store" such information, or "talk or write to others in private" about it.
- Beginning in 2014, journalists working in China will be required to pass an exam in order to qualify for press accreditation. The training materials for the exam are said to emphasize government-friendly ideology, and encourage journalists to take on the role of guiding public opinion.
Chinese authorities have also tightened their grip on the internet, with the establishment of the Central Internet Security and Informatization Leading Group in February 2014.
Although the leading group is ostensibly tasked with formulating China's cyber security strategy and developing the country into a "cyber power," subsequent security measures that were rolled out resulted in websites and blogs being shutdown, millions of posts being removed from social media platforms, and scores of arrests without charge, according to the IFJ.
Press freedom in Hong Kong, meanwhile, endured a "chilling" 2014.
Several journalists in Hong Kong were victims of intimidation and violent assaults, while a number of television, radio, and print outlets struggled with self-censorship due to internal and external pressure.
Two leading Hong Kong-based newspapers, Ming Pao and the Hong Kong Economic Journal, were accused of practicing self-censorship, along with Hong Kong's largest free-to-air television station, TVB, and public broadcaster RTHK.
In all cases upper management at these media groups was suspected of intervening in editorial decisions in order to avoid falling foul of authorities in China and Hong Kong – as well as influential advertisers – according to the IFJ.
Although mainstream media outlets in Hong Kong are loosely lumped into two camps – "pro-Beijing" and "pro-democracy" – the Occupy Central Movement triggered an unprecedented departure from editorial independence, with many Hong Kong media organizations accused of bias.
A survey of the public's trust in the media by the Chinese University of Hong Kong found that the credibility of the media had fallen to its lowest level since Hong Kong's return to China in 1997.
Robert Sullivan is a Hong Kong-based journalist. He covers energy for Interfax and writes on current affairs in China and Hong Kong. He received his Masters in Asia-Pacific Policy from the University of British Columbia.
Press Freedom in China 'Deplorable': IFJ | The Diplomat
