According to reports, the Chinese government has put forth a new series of internet censorship laws aimed at encouraging “positive” content online while barring material deemed to be “negative” or illegal. These new internet censorship laws have not only been censoring more and more online content discussing the coronavirus, but it has also led to the censorship of LGBTQ content, feminist content, and any content that features “sexual innuendo”. Not only that, but popular websites in China, such as the fan fiction webste Archive of our Own, have been blocked completely.
I personally think that the Chinese government is completely moving in the wrong direction. Many Chinese citizens are already skeptical of the Chinese government due to the fact that the government has been censoring so much information online about the coronavirus. The Chinese government should be decreasing the amount of censorhip online so that Chinese citizens can start to trust the government more. The Chinese government is unjustifibly trying to control what information citizens have the right to see and hear. The government thinks that by censoring content online that is “negative” they are protecting its citizens but really they are just depriving citizens of their right to information and their right to express themselves freely.
LIS 4022 Spring 2020 