Tear down this firewall!

Comparisons to Nelson Mandela
were nearly automatic once
 the announcement of  imprisoned
Liu Xiaobo was finalized.
PHOTO: AFP

Ever since the Norwegian Nobel Institute awarded this year's prize to Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo earlier this month, much of the world has cautiously watched the Chinese government's questionable handling of the announcement. Pulling up nearly three million Google results, Xiaobo seems to be all over the internet.

Not so in China. According to CNN, "Liu Xiaobo" is not a searchable name in his home country. CNN also reports the Nobel Institute's website and any international broadcasts concerning the peace prize were blocked within hours of the announcement.  Xiaobo, a major contributor to Charter 08 -- a manifesto calling for the furthering of human rights in China, is currently imprisoned for "inciting subversion of state power." Xiaobo isn't scheduled to be released for another ten years.




These governmental tactics at censorship are nothing new; numerous countries control all or the majority of national media. In fact, as restricting as its actions might appear of late, China did not even crack the top ten most censored countries in a 2006 report from the Committee to Protect Journalists.  (http://cpj.org/reports/2006/05/10-most-censored-countries.php)

CPJ listed North Korea as the most censored nation in the world, citing the government's total control of all domestic media and the limited access given to any international journalists. Other notable countries on the list include Cuba, Syria and Libya, labeled the most restricting in the Middle East.

Dr. Joshua Landis, Director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Oklahoma, agrees censorship is an issue but thinks social media and technological advancements have provided a unique opportunity to override censoring.

Landis, who has lived in the Middle East for much of his life, said,"All over the Middle East -- Facebook, Youtube are restricted, but there are proxies. You can't find a computer in Syria where Facebook is not accessible. They [government] have a very hard time censoring sites because you can go through just about anything and get to Facebook. The president and the first lady of Syria have Facebook sites."

In much the same way, Chinese citizens use these proxies to get desired information, says OU Chinese History professor Dr. Miriam Gross, although, she adds, most in China have not heard of Xiaobo. Liu Xia, Xiaobo's wife, has been under house arrest since her husband's achievement, but has still managed to maintain her twitter account. Xia has added thousands of followers in the mere weeks.

Landis said along with the introduction of satellite television, social media has helped people manage dialogue more effectively. "They're realizing they don't have to be as frightened of free speech," he said.

For more with Dr. Landis, check out these excerpts.