China to Google: Get Your Censorship Act Together

FT reports:

Wang Chen, head of the State Council Information Office and deputy head of the Communist party’s propaganda department, said internet media “must live up to their responsibility of maintaining internet security”, including censoring content.

“We must do our best to intensify self-discipline among internet media to guarantee internet security,” he said.

China’s government demands self-censorship – which it calls “self-discipline” – from internet companies. Although Mr Wang did not mention Google by name, his emarks were being seen as Beijing’s first response to the US internet company’s threat to exit the country....

In a lengthy statement published on a government website, Mr Wang said China was facing new challenges in regulating the internet as, among other factors, in the Web 2.0 era internet users were no longer just recipients but also creators of information.

In response, internet media were required to guard online news even more actively, he said. “Online media must treat the creation of a positive mainstream opinion environment as an important duty,” he said.