Censorship is the practice of examining movies, books, art, and media among other things and suppressing the vulgar parts. It is a common feature in the film and media world, where various censorship bodies put in place different viewership categories. The internet has its censorship regulations though there are flaws in these systems. However, certain countries have an upper hand to these regulations, which turn out to be an issue towards the rights of its citizens. China is among the few nations with strict censorship laws that prevent freedom of speech. Every Chinese resident is living in a censorship box created by the government. Despite the internal concerns aired by people, the government continues to stand its ground. However, the government ought to understand its censorship influences public thinking, diminishes global connections, enables political corruption, and underscores the need for economists, governors and, charities to search for its solutions.
The media has been on the censorship issue with the government for a long time (Xu par 1). The Chinese government kept a tight rein on the traditional media for decades and had to do the same for new media. Its main concerns are the subversion of its authority by the media since it has a major impact to the thoughts and views raised by people. Some of its major tactics is monitoring the media’s firewalls and systems, shuttering websites or publications, jailing persistent journalists, activists, and bloggers (Xu par 2). These stringent ways are putting the country in a backward progress on international relations. Most countries economy depends on the progress made by its citizens in collaborating up with the international market. These interactions help create job opportunities, increase their income channels, and establish better relations. It helps them be in the loop on things that happen in their day-to-day lives.
However, the Chinese government is quite clever in its policies as they provide the media and citizen with freedom of press and speech. The catch is the regulation made on the stories aired, as they have to align to the country’s image and perception (Xu par 4). The two-sided image created by the government protects its secrets, which would distort most of its operations if it were to land in the wrong hands. The government secrets and missions are the main reasons for censorship in China. However, the introduction of internet across the globe was quite a tussle for the government since the international laws had a higher authority than China’s. Despite the variation, the government had to look for a way to regulate the internet use by its people.
The Chinese government developed a white paper, an agreement for all Internet users to abide by the laws and regulations of China. The law applied to the residents, non-residents, local and foreign organizations, making it quite impossible for the foreigners to enact international laws. Once again, the Chinese government was able to regulate the media by introducing a new law, which affected anyone living in the country regardless of their nationality. Chinese internet companies have to sign a public pledge of self-regulation and professional ethics as outlined in the China Internet Industry (Xu par 7). The rules set on websites were stricter than the white paper, strangling their freedom to exercise their freedom of speech. Apart from that, the government would regulate most of its usage and activism.
With such stringent laws in place, one wonders what kind of freedom is in place if most of it has to undergo revision. Some of the international websites such as Wikipedia, Google, Facebook, and Twitter are under the media laws and most of the time its citizens cannot access them (Mozur par 5). Social media is a major influence of change in the region, which makes it a big threat to the government. Hence, during political unrest or elections, the government blocks these sites to avoid incitement and demonstrations. One of the historical occasions, when the government blocked the sites, was the fourth of June anniversary held at the Tiananmen Square (Mozur par 8). Controversial material such as articles and photos that would bring about political instability were brought down by the government. Most of these materials uncovered the countries’ ethnic and corruption deals, which would actively spike demonstrations.
Major international media houses like Bloomberg and the New York Times faced scrutiny in the country due to the reports aired in 2012 over a coup attempt by Xi Jinping and Wen Jiabao (Xu par 8). Apart from that, the stories detailed the leader’s wealth and corrupt ways. With time, other microbloggers ran their versions of these claims; each of them detailing more information about the threats and preparations. Treatment of foreign reporters in the country became a diplomatic issue, despite the rule of obtaining permission before publishing a story. Chris Buckley, a New York Times reporter, had his visa canceled due to a controversial story he was running, though the government stated that he had irregular documents (Mozur par 5). Such treatments to the international mass media make it quite hard for foreigners to make extend its horizon to the country.
In a report covered by Beina Xu, the United States trade officials identified the Internet blocks and filters as a major trade barrier (par 4). In the last decade, foreign suppliers suffered great losses due to poor communication means with the international market. Most of them rely heavily on the internet and social media to create connections with people across the globe (Xu par 9). With the white paper rules in place, it is quite hard for them to communicate at their pleasure. The United States continue to fight against overt policies and censorship that prevent the flow of information and data across the international borders. China promises to change the handling of censorship in its country by giving states the power. However, the situation is still the same since the previous bodies play a part in the state’s decisions. China continues to shrug off the desire to separate national and commercial security threats, which would be favorable to the set rules. International websites such as Google fights for such rules set on the international market to be brought down as it would greatly its citizens (Wiseman par 5).
Opening up the country to international markets will help the country absorb more resources and investors to its system. China is a favorable country for manufacturing and assembly with international companies such as Apple, LG and Nokia making it a preferable choice for its industries (Beech par 7). The entry of other investors will help ease the current unemployment issues facing the country. Social media is providing opportunities for skilled developers and programmers, which the country harbors in plenty. However, blocking its use and ability within the country makes companies like Facebook and Twitter opt out of the country. Twitter plays a major part in providing updates to people and enhanced outreach to disaster-stricken areas (Beech par 9). It is an ideal tool for community outreaches and distress help, especially when flash floods occur in certain areas of the country.
China should embrace the freedom of the press and come up with better ways of regulating press freedom. Regulating the international market will continue to bring down the country’s ability to meet its full potential. The government should make better relations with its traditional media such as TV for them to help in times of distress. Apart from that, it will help in the industry’s growth, in turn providing job opportunities to its citizen. Tom Phillips expresses his concerns over the media treatment by the government especially the recent request made by the government on China Central Television, CCTV, to be loyal (par 1). Such laws paint a bad picture on the government’s will to let the media have its freedom especially on what matters they can air (Phillips par 3).
The concern by the United States on its firewall towards the international websites and social media shows the damage it causes towards the overall perception and image (James par 4). Creation of media that glorifies ethnic wars, colonialism and dynastic conquests should not be existent. The promotion of press freedom is a vital concept in the making of a nation. The new stringent laws made on content bring down the freedom of expression by creators (Beech par 3). The film industry continues to suffer since they cannot perform under their specifications since the regulators have to verify its work.
In conclusion, China should review all its regulations and differentiate between commercial and international concerns of security. There ought to be law and order in all countries but it should not suppress the citizens or block the international relations of a country. The current laws and regulations change China from a democratic country to a dictatorship country, which will hurt its economy. The change is vital to the public thinking, global connections, and international relations. It will bring down the cases of political corruption and ethnicity across the region.
Works Cited
Beech, Hannah. World’s Most Populous Nation With Very Little to Watch on TV. 4 March 2016. Web. 9 May 2016. <http://time.com/4247432/china-tv-television-media-censorship/>
James, Randy. Chinese Internet Censorship. 18 Mar 2009. Web. 16 May 2016. < http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1885961,00.html>
Mozur, Paul. U.S. Adds China’s Internet Controls to List of Trade Barriers. 7 April 2016. Web. 9 May 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/08/business/international/china-internet-controls-us.html>
Phillips, Tom. Chinese magazine challenges government over censorship. 9 March 2016. Web. 9 May 2016. <http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/08/chinese-magazine-challenges-government-censorship-organ>
Wiseman, Paul. Cracking the 'Great Firewall' of China's Web censorship. 2015. Web. 9 May 2016. <http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=4707107&page=1>
Xu, Beina. Media Censorship In China. 7 April 2015. Web. 9 May 2016. <http://www.cfr.org/china/media-censorship-china/p11515>
