http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-20954916
A BBC article about the possible censorship of a Chinese newspaper, which has sparked a recent argument in the Chinese national discourse. The article concludes by citing a New York Times article which argues that freedom of the press should have its limits. But in a country where artists are commonly punished or jailed for their works, is saying that freedom of speech "must have limits" a good idea? The point of the press shouldn't be to protect the image of the government. An opaque government is easily corruptible, and one of the few ways to keep checks and balances on the government is by the press. A press which is controlled by the government is an ineffective press.
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Censorship within Chinese media, including art, has long been a topic of controversy, however, if China is censoring their news media, they are doing a good job covering their tracks. Every suspicion or speculation about censorship is denied. These protests may be a sign, though, that China is beginning to lose its grip on the media. If this is the case, as it seems it is due to the fact these recent suspicions are not being obscured as well as they normally are, China may be experiencing a period of enlightenment, where the people are becoming more knowledgeable of their government's corruption and where they are acting out against these corruptions. If it is true that this is developing into a period of enlightenment, and if this enlightenment follows historical scenarios, China may soon see significant change.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting topic that I have never heard of before. Upon reading the article, a quote that really stuck out to me was the one the author chose to close with: "China's news management system is walking a difficult tightrope between the nation's development and the development of its media." With complete freedom of speech here in the United States, we don't have to worry about the development of our country verses the development of our media. I predict that if all of the media in China eventually becomes heavily censored, the continual perpetuation of propaganda will most likely anger the Chinese residents. Essentially I agree with Matt, I believe that probably not too far in the future a change regarding the entire system of media will occur.
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