Censorship News

China stays mum as Hong Kong protests extradition bill

By AFP

Bejing - Chinese state media remained largely silent as an estimated two million Hong Kong people took to the streets Sunday to protest an extradition bill, with social platforms scrubbed clean of any pictures or mentions of the rally.

Samoa bans hit Elton John biopic over gay sex scenes

By AFP

Apia - Samoa has banned the blockbuster Elton John biopic "Rocketman" from cinemas over depictions of gay sex, which remains illegal in the Pacific island nation.

Elton John blasts Russian cuts of gay sex scenes in 'Rocketman'

By AFP

Moscow - Elton John has slammed the removal of gay sex scenes from the Russian version of the musical biopic of his life "Rocketman" as "cruelly unaccepting".

China blocks all language editions of Wikipedia

By AFP

Bejing - Beijing has broadened its block of online encyclopedia Wikipedia to include all language editions, reported an internet censorship research group, ahead of the country's most politically explosive anniversary.

Microsoft's work with Chinese military university raises eyebrows

By AFP

Bejing - Microsoft has been collaborating with researchers linked to a Chinese military-backed university on artificial intelligence, elevating concerns that US firms are contributing to China's high-tech surveillance and censorship apparatus.

Thousands protest Russia's 'internet isolation'

By AFP

Moscow - Thousands of people rallied against Russia's increasingly restrictive internet policies Sunday which critics say will eventually lead to "total censorship" and isolate the country from the world.

China entertainment endures 'bitter winter' after crackdowns

By AFP

Dongyang Shi - Chinese film and television are reeling from what industry insiders call a "bitterly cold winter" of sharper government scrutiny that is expected to lead to more Communist Party-friendly content.

Microsoft's Bing search engine inaccessible in China

By AFP

Bejing - Microsoft's Bing search engine was inaccessible in China on Thursday, with social media users fearing it could be the latest foreign website to be blocked by censors.Attempts to open cn.bing.

Hatred stirred by leaders blamed for rise in journalist murders: watchdog

By AFP

Paris - Hatred whipped up by "unscrupulous politicians" has contributed to the shocking rise in the number of journalists murdered in 2018, a media watchdog said Tuesday.

China ups cash rewards for citizens who report porn

By AFP

Bejing - China is raising the cash rewards paid to citizens for reporting pornographic and "illegal" publications to authorities, government regulators said Friday.

Sundar Pichai spoke about Google's China plans for the first time

By Business Insider

Google chief executive Sundar Pichai commented publicly for the first time on the company's efforts to launch a censored search engine in China.

China puts block on Twitch game-streaming service

By Tim Sandle

The game-streaming service Twitch, which is owned by Amazon, is no longer accessible to users inside China. The app has also disappeared from the China Apple Store.

Ukraine region ban on Russian culture sparks controversy

By AFP

Lviv - The decision by a fiercely pro-Western region of Ukraine to ban Russian-language arts, from songs to books and films, prompted widespread condemnation on Thursday even as it remained unclear how it would be implemented.

Row over Ukraine region's ban on Russian-language culture

By AFP

Lviv - A Ukrainian region's decision to ban Russian-language arts, from songs to books and films, prompted growing controversy Thursday even as it remained unclear how it would be implemented.

Rights groups urge Google not to bend to China censors

By AFP

San Francisco - Human rights groups and other advocacy organizations Tuesday urged Google to abandon any plans to craft a censored version of its search engine that could pass muster with regulators in China.

Brazil's 'queer museum' reopens in Rio after forced closure

By AFP

Rio De Janeiro - Brazil's "queer museum," forced to close last year after conservatives attacked it for allegedly promoting pedophilia, blasphemy and bestiality, is reopening in the shadow of Rio de Janeiro's iconic Christ the Redeemer statue.

Russian internet group protests prosecutions for 'likes'

By AFP

Moscow - The Russian company that owns the country's most popular social media network on Monday expressed concern at the increasing number of internet users facing prosecution for liking and sharing content online.

Spotify dumps 'specific' far-right Alex Jones podcast episodes

By AFP

Stockholm - The world's largest streaming service Spotify has removed podcast episodes of American far-right radio show host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones for breaching its policy against hate speech.

New Murakami novel ruled 'indecent' by Hong Kong censors

By AFP

Fpo - Bestselling Japanese writer Haruki Murakami's latest novel has been deemed "indecent" by Hong Kong censors, triggering backlash in the city where concern is growing that freedom of expression is increasingly under threat.

#MeToo activists use blockchain to skirt China censors

By AFP

Bejing - Attempts to silence a student who drew attention to sexual abuse allegations at a Chinese university have inspired tech-savvy activists to use blockchain technology to dodge censors and keep the fledgling #MeToo movement alive.

Trump, Russia and China media attacks 'threaten democracy'

By AFP

Paris - Press freedom around the world is under threat from a triple whammy of US President Donald Trump, Russia and China's bid to crush all dissent, a watchdog said Wednesday.

Iran president criticises violence by morality police

By AFP

Tehran - Iran's President Hassan Rouhani on Saturday appeared to criticise the morality police after a video emerged of a violent encounter with a woman accused of breaching the country's strict dress code.

China's Weibo backtracks on gay content ban

By AFP

Bejing - China's popular Weibo microblogging platform on Monday reversed a decision to block "homosexual" content, in an unusual concession to a storm of online protest at the weekend.

'I am gay' protests as China bans 'homosexual' content on Weibo

By AFP

Bejing - China's Sina Weibo said it would remove "homosexual" content from the popular microblogging platform, prompting a storm of online protests Saturday under the hashtag "I am gay".

Foreign companies in China brace for VPN crackdown

By AFP

Bejing - Chinese people and foreign firms are girding for a weekend deadline that will curb the use of unlicensed software to circumvent internet controls, as the government plugs holes in its "Great Firewall".

Op-Ed: Twitter asking for outside help to help remove 'toxic material'

By Ken Hanly

Twitter has responded to criticism that it has not done enough to remove "toxic" material in a number of ways. Now the company is asking for suggestions from the public to help promote healthy, open and civil conversations online.

Website of top Kremlin critic blocked after tycoon complaint

By AFP

Moscow - Russia's media watchdog on Thursday blocked the website of opposition leader Alexei Navalny after he posted a video alleging a deputy prime minister enjoyed lavish hospitality from a billionaire tycoon.

China orders microblog companies to ramp up censorship

By AFP

Bejing - China Friday ordered the country's microblog operators to establish mechanisms to remove false information, in the latest move by authorities to tighten policing of the web.

Iran removes block on Telegram

By AFP

Tehran - Iran has lifted restrictions imposed during recent protests on the country's most popular social media app Telegram.AFP journalists were able to access the service on Sunday and officials confirmed it has been restored.

China has shut down 13,000 websites since 2015: Xinhua

By AFP

Bejing - China has shut down or revoked the licenses of 13,000 websites since 2015 for violating the country's internet rules, state media reported Sunday.