China's Vision of the Internet

[Randy W]

At China online coming-out party, Beijing spells out Internet control ambition

China showed governments and the planet's biggest tech firms last week its vision for global Internet governance - clean, controlled and choreographed.

 

. . .

 

At a summit hosted by government leaders, nothing was left to chance and reporters were not allowed to ask questions directly in numerous events, a common practice at industry conferences in China.

 

After one panel discussion was filmed with an official moderator, state media reporters were then given the cue to address empty chairs on a podium as cameras rolled.

 

That footage was set to be spliced into the TV broadcast of the panel, featuring big industry names, in late November, said a person with direct knowledge of the matter, giving the impression that the reporters had carried out a dialogue with the industry leaders.

 

. . .

 

China's leaders spoke of an Internet that should be free and open - and controlled on its own terms.

 

"China has made, at the top level, a decision that it needs to be part of a global Internet," said Fadi Chehade, president and chief executive of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a non-profit organization which manages the infrastructure of the Internet.

 

"China is also telling the world...'We're no longer going to be bystanders in how the Internet is governed'," Chehade said.

 

[Randy W]

Big V's is China's name for "opinion leaders, or verified microblog users, who set the agenda and even influenced what common Net users loved or hated." An interesting article on Internet freedom in the Global Times

 

End to ‘Big Vs’ has kept Internet diverse

 

Unlawful opinions and rumors have been gradually withdrawing. The Internet is no longer a place free from legal restrictions.

There are still varied opinions on the Internet, some very sharp. There are also people venting their anger at all kinds of online forums or expressing their views that may not fit into the mainstream. The Internet stays an alternative channel to expose alleged scandals, its functions as a platform to express opinions and monitor wrongdoings are intact.

 

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We believe the authorities will not just block channels of speech in their managing of the Internet - it will do no good to the country's reform and opening-up, as discontent may pile up under the surface.

But freedom of speech on the Internet is not without limits. It cannot challenge China's basic political system. All sides have to take a constructive attitude in dealing with this question.

Some Western media depicted a dark picture of China's Internet measures in 2014. It only reflects the typical political stance from many in the West. If Internet freedom goes the way they wish, it will become a huge trap for China.

China is still going through a major transformation. More problems will emerge as voices on the Internet interact with reality. It will be more helpful for opinion leaders to objectively and reasonably help with exchanges between the public and authorities, instead of stoking social divides.

In the past, some of the Big Vs, many boasting millions of followers each, did not just raise their opinions on certain issues. They joined hands to stir up waves over an issue as if organizing a massive protest.

 

 

 

What I've said about the Internet - it's a "sandbox" for everyone to play in - a sandbox that is monitored, controlled - and seeded.