The challenge of freedom of speech
In China, furor over censorship is spreading
By Keith B. Richburg, WashPost, Updated: Monday, January 7, 8:57 AM
BEIJING — Hundreds of supporters of the reform-minded Guangdong newspaper Southern Weekly staged a rare public protest against state censorship outside the paper’s offices Monday, while prominent business tycoons, opinion makers and film stars used their microblogging accounts to demand greater press freedom in China.
Meanwhile, several of the newspaper’s editors and reporters said they were going on strike, which would be the first such action by journalists against official press restrictions in more than two decades.
“This is actually something pretty amazing,” said Hung Huang, a publisher, writer and blogger. “It’s the first time the media is protesting against censorship. This is the first time they took action and said, ‘We’re not going to take this anymore.’ . . . Somehow, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Cheng Yizhong, a television executive who is a founder and former chief editor of the Southern Metropolis Daily newspaper, called the protests “an explosion that was a longtime coming, and with good timing.” He added, “This could be an opportunity to push forward freedom of speech.”
(More here.)
BEIJING — Hundreds of supporters of the reform-minded Guangdong newspaper Southern Weekly staged a rare public protest against state censorship outside the paper’s offices Monday, while prominent business tycoons, opinion makers and film stars used their microblogging accounts to demand greater press freedom in China.
Meanwhile, several of the newspaper’s editors and reporters said they were going on strike, which would be the first such action by journalists against official press restrictions in more than two decades.
“This is actually something pretty amazing,” said Hung Huang, a publisher, writer and blogger. “It’s the first time the media is protesting against censorship. This is the first time they took action and said, ‘We’re not going to take this anymore.’ . . . Somehow, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Cheng Yizhong, a television executive who is a founder and former chief editor of the Southern Metropolis Daily newspaper, called the protests “an explosion that was a longtime coming, and with good timing.” He added, “This could be an opportunity to push forward freedom of speech.”
(More here.)
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