Sites banned
China has widened an Internet crackdown on ‘vulgar’ content to target 14 new sites, including Microsoft’s MSN. It has also said Google is not doing enough to clean up.
MSN was cited for the large amount of inappropriate images on its film channel and some ‘selected pictures’ in its social messaging section on a list posted on the website of the government-supported China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center
The government has a sophisticated network of controls that can shut off entire websites or just block individual pages within them, and a system to encourage self-censorship by major Internet companies.
The government has not said how many ‘cybercops’ it fields, but China’s Xinhua agency reported two years ago that they would monitor all major portals and online forums across the country.
Launched earlier this week, the latest dragnet originally targeted 19 sites, including Google and homegrown market-leading rival Baidu, for undermining public morality,
The companies have since apologized and pledged to clean up, and Beijing apparently plans to hold them to their promises.
Source: Reuters