China: We Closed 50 Microblogs for Spreading Vulgarity

CHINA—Chinese authorities said Monday that 50 microblogging accounts have been shuttered by the government because of violations related to the distribution of porn and other "vulgar" content, reported xinhuanet.com. "According to an unnamed official from the State Internet Information Office," the site reported, "the microblogs were shut down for violations that include carrying pornographic images and videos, information for prostitution, as well as illegal advertising for sex-related drugs and productions." The authorities further claimed that citizens had reported the accounts, which were investigated and then closed. With a reported 500 million people online, the Chinese government, which is well-known for its attempts to limit criticism of official policies, has publicly touted its years-long campaign to close websites that offend its sense of decency, but some insist that the campaign serves another more vital interest—stifling public criticism of the government. "China's microbloggers showed their potency in a string of recent official scandals, particularly an online uproar in the wake of a high-speed bullet train crash in July that killed 40 people," reported Reuters. "Microbloggers led the charge in challenging rail officials' evasive accounts of the disaster." China also denies Twitter, YouTube and Facebook the ability to operate in the country, but it permits other internally run microblogging sites, called weibo, to operate, some of which dwarf the size of Twitter in terms of membership. As AVN reported earlier this month, Western celebrities as well as a Japanese porn star popular with the Chinese have weibo accounts that attract millions of followers. Whatever the government's ultimate intent may be, the state regulatory official indicated today that the government has every intention of keeping up the pressure. "Authorities will continue to take measures to cut down on new channels used for spreading pornography and vulgar material," xinhuanet.com quoted him as saying.