Social Media and Democratic Reform

Since early dynastic governments, China has monitored and controlled media to avoid the undermining of its authority. Some reasons for this censorship are well known by Westerners, others less so. In 221 B.C, Emperor Qin Shi Huang burned Confucian and Taoist books in order to rid the dynasty of different political perspectives. He did this not only to maintain order and unity, but also because he was impelled by other ancient Chinese values. Values that included a belief in state’s rights over human rights and the preservation of the dynasty at all costs. The more complex models of censorship used in China today were first used in the Soviet Union from 1922-1991 and are rooted in Marxist- Leninist thought. Westerners would be wise to consider China’s political history and deeply held social

When it comes to China, they have banned popular websites such as Facebook, Youtube, Google and many more (Denyer). “Google is still blocked in China, and local search engine Baidu has its results heavily censored. But the difference between Baidu searches in Chinese and in English if for the word “Tiananmen,” or the phrase “Tiananmen tank man,” is revealing: The Chinese searches yield no links to the pro-democracy protests in 1989 or the lone man who tried to prevent the tanks; advance into the square-just to the vast square’s virtues as a tourist attraction” (Denyre). If they do search those kewords and “tank man”, “According to relevant laws, regulations and policies, some results are not displayed” (Denyer), would show up. China created a firewall and a policy for the internet where they can not go on certain social media and/or search up the Tiananmen tank man because they do not want Chinese citizens to get exposed to the Tiananmen Square massacre (Denyer). Tiananmen Square massacre was where “China’s People’s Liberation Army gun down hundreds of civilians in a brutal crackdown on protests against government corruption, lack of transparency and freedom of speech” (Saul). The word “tank man” came from that one student protester, Wang Weilin (Saul). He was the brave student who stood in front of a line of tanks to stop them from coming (Saul). He stopped the tanks, climbed up and into the cockpit and told

Also in Bryant Simon essay “Global Brands Contend with Appreciation for the Local” Simon argues that “global brands will erode national, regional and neighborhood distinctiveness.”(368) Ariela Garvett talks about internet democracy and social media and its potential. She focuses on the potential of worldwide social media and the amount of group power it can give.In Garvett essay “Tweets and Transitions: How the Arab Spring Reaffirms the Internet’s Democratizing Potential” she writes, “The Internet demonstrates the possibilities of change

To build his argument, he ties in similar examples from history that involve either social or political activism. Not only does he connect these examples to the “weak ties” that the platforms of social media are built upon, but he also offers insight to his readers, the general public, and social-networking gurus (Gladwell 551). In his essay, “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted”, Gladwell creates a rhetorically effective argument that illustrates why social networking is not an adequate way to conduct social or political activism.

Gladwell sends a very strong message about how social media cannot cause a major revolution in society; likewise, Baron is sending across the same message. Revolutions continue even after the internet is shut down. As crowds gathered in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, Baron describes how they “continued to grow during the five days that the Mubarak government shut down the internet” (330). The crowds increased in size without the help of social media. Somehow, word got out and people came to support the cause. Also, Baron brings into realization that Americans are too involved in the world of social media. Americans fail to realize all of the news that they are missing because they “can’t seem to survive without the constant stimulus of digital multitasking” (Baron 330). American citizens are too busy tweeting about what they ate for breakfast to worry about the hungry that is going on overseas. They depend on social networking to tell them the news rather that picking up a newspaper and reading about what is going on in their country or maybe even overseas in a different country.

In his article “Small Change: Why the Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted”, published in the New York Times on October 2010, Malcolm Gladwell looks closely into the notion of social change and the different means to achieve it. He makes a clear distinction between traditional activism, which implies sacrifices and physical devotion, and current activism, based on social networks. The writer considers that “social media can’t provide what social change has always required” (Gladwell, paragraph 1).

“There is danger0from all men.0The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man0living with power to endanger the0public liberty.” says Ayn Rand. The novel Forbidden City by William Bell tells us a real story about students and civilians democracy in0Beijing, China in 1989. The government no0longer works for people when the movement0becomes violent and a power struggle between the government and people appears. In a word, power0can take over0freedom when a certain0group of people controls it all, but it can’t control people’s0thoughts forever. Firstly, the setting shows the background0which is thousands of students were doing hunger strike in Tian An0Men Square because of freedom. The Character Lao Xu is one of the leaders in the activity of hunger strike Lao Xu sacrificed because saving students. Finally the conflict between China0and citizen shows that government cannot ignore any citizens and controls their thoughts.

Imagine. Imagine having the continuous feeling of needing to act a certain way because that is what the government wants. Imagine having to worship in an underground church because of belonging to the "wrong" religion. Imagine being blind and not being able to learn because the government cannot accept a disability. Lastly, imagine being killed because of simply disagreeing. This is everyday life in China for many people because of what the Communist Chinese government has caused for decades. Human Rights Abuse in China has caused millions of deaths and permanent injuries. In 1979, the One Child Policy was created and ever since then the abuse has escalated into being a normal part of lives. On June 4 1989, the government took the abuse to a whole other level. This fateful day was called the Tiananmen Square crackdown. This was the day of millions of deaths. China's government truly takes human rights violations to an extreme and has caused fear among their people. The government has previously claimed

China is one of the most controlled countries in the world. The Chinese constitution states that the people of China have freedom of speech, of the press, and of demonstration. However, this article in the constitution also states that the Chinese government has the authority to censor anything in the country when freedom of speech or of press could potentially be harmful to the country. So, in China, you are free to speak, but only about what the government says is okay to talk about. Also, protesting in China is a very dangerous task, as shown in the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989. But, in August 2009, Chinese Internet users were able to “indefinitely postpone” the use of censorship software on all new computers in China, called the

There is also no freedom of speech in China. Authors of the criticizing articles about China were executed under the reason, “protection of state

This essay explores the different relationships between social media platforms and the government to provide insight into the different ways the government uses media masses to further their agendas and how its good business is used for political gain. This essay also discusses the different ideologies and fallacies individuals have of the media’s role in society. This essay wasn’t written to persuade one either way, but rather to bring the important relationship to light, so with better understanding people can make wiser decisions as voters, consumers or investors.

This proves that China, at all costs, censors its citizens from accessing history the government deems potentially causing further protest.

The Chinese government had enforced these rules and regulations through blocking, filtering and shutting down Internet cafes. According to Amnesty International, the Chinese government routinely blocks news sites, especially those with dissident views or banned groups. Anniversary’s such as the 1989 pro-democracy protests are heavily guarded days that see increase Internet blocking. Internet blocking of major search gateways is also

The Freedom of Speech is granted to every American citizen and has been since it was founded in 1776; however, not every nation grants that right. China, as a communist nation, retains most individual freedom rights from its citizens. Although in the Peoples Republic of China’s (PRC) 1982 constitution, people are guaranteed Freedom of Expression and Press; it is often violated by the current corrupt government. The government demands the news to be 80% positive and 20% negative, altering the facts n occasion. In contrast to that, America has recently become more involved with the pressing issue as well because of the involvement of Google. Thus it has shined the light on government censorship and corruption. China’s government corruption

Google’s policy of self-censorship in China did not sit well with the public or human rights organizations.