New MySpace China Tells Users to Spy on Each Other

[jetsetter]

UPDATED: MySpace, the world's largest social networking website, has finally come to China, the world's most populous nation. After months of delays, China's 1.3 billion citizens are now able to create their own pages on the Chinese-language version of MySpace. But unlike MySpace in other countries, sensitive topics like religion and politics are nowhere to be found on the Chinese site, and users are asked to report 'subversive' activity.

MySpace, which already has more than 100 million users worldwide, is backed by News Corporation, one of the world's largest media groups. The company formally announced MySpace China yesterday, and the site went live shortly after midnight in China, with a layout which mimics that of its main global site - with a few key differences.

Discussion forums on subjects like religion and politics are nowhere to be found on the new Chinese MySpace site, even though these are popular topics on other international MySpace sites. Instead, users are only offered safer topics for conversation, such as humor, sport and movies.

Users are told to click a button if they spot any 'misconduct' by other users. This 'misconduct' includes actions such as 'endangering national security, leaking state secrets, subverting the government, undermining national unity, spreading rumors or disturbing the social order' – according to the site's terms and conditions (Chinese page).

Attempts to post content containing a variety of sensitive terms, such as 'Taiwanese independence', the 'Fa Lun' religious movement or the Dalai Lama, produce the following message. 'Sorry, the article you want to publish may contain inappropriate content. Please delete the unsuitable content, and then try reposting it. Thank you. '

Domain Names lost

Most potential Chinese domain names for MySpace were snapped up by cybersquatters or others, after MySpace neglected to register them, as Texyt reported earlier this week. The company's Chinese site is located at MySpace.cn, a departure from normal MySpace practice of adding national sites as a sub-domain of its main MySpace.com site (such as uk.myspace.com). This appears to underline a clear division between the existing MySpace and its Chinese offshoot.

MySpace China to be locally managed

Unlike most other Western internet companies in China, MySpace China will run independently of the international head office, the company's CEO in China, Luo Chuan, told reporters, according to Chinese website, Finance World (Chinese language link).

The local management has “total control” over MySpace operations in China, Luo stressed. With 130 million internet users in China, the company is aiming first at the core group of 30 million regular users, he told reporters.

Luo said the site must attract active users, not just lurkers who don't add content. However, MySpace has not said how it will find its way through the minefield of government censorship and political control that has hurt other Western internet firms in China.

Yahoo, for example, has been sued by users who were imprisoned after the Chinese government allegedly used Yahoo data to track them down when they posted politically-sensitive information.

However, by not even offering discussion forums on contentious issues like politics and religion, MySpace appears to be setting down firm guidelines to users. The picture here shows these hugely popular topics on the main US-based MySpace site - they are not present on the newly-launched Chinese MySpace site.

MySpace China's content filter

Even searching in English for the name of the Dalai Lama, generally acknowledged as the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, is enough to invoke MySpace's content filter in China, as the screenshots above show. The Chinese-language message that appears warns that the search phrase contains 'inappropriate content.' and continues 'Please delete the unsuitable content, and then try reposting it. Thank you.'

http://texyt.com/MySpace+China+censo...s+religion+064

Hmmm........

[Viper007Bond]

China can do suck a dick. That is all.

[andrebsd]

Originally Posted by Viper007Bond

China can do suck a dick. That is all.

Amen to that!

[Blind_Io]

"Report your family and friends, fabulous prizes to be won!" - Red Dwarf, Back to Reality

[jayhawk]

The Chinese's Government will probably also prohibit blurry webcam pictures of sulky emo kids.

That would be a plus.

[Firecat]

They are trying to protect their citizens, which is understandable. I think they should also block searches on "average penis sizes"

I'm just sayin'

[FATMOUSE]

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/27/bu...erland&emc=rss

Luo Chuan, 38, who used to run Microsoft’s MSN portal in China, will be the company’s chief executive. “We want to create a site that allows people to find serious relationships and to share something with new friends,” he said, “to share pain and loneliness.”

It's kind of sad, but that paragraph does make me

[tigger]

"To share pain and loneliness?" Lol, yes; sad but oh so funny.

I can't say i'm really suprised to see this. Not after all the crap with Yahoo.

[Cobol74]

Well - News Corp - will never upset the Chinese Govt; they have too many interests (financial) that depend upon friendly relationships with the Chinese Government.

[chaos386]

Just one more reason for me not to like MySpace.

[Donington]

"I'M NOT MOVING UNTIL YOU ADD ME!!"

[BlaRo]

Originally Posted by Viper007Bond

China can do suck a dick. That is all.

Originally Posted by andrebsd

Amen to that!

Originally Posted by Firecat

They are trying to protect their citizens, which is understandable. I think they should also block searches on "average penis sizes"

I'm just sayin'

Originally Posted by Donington

"I'M NOT MOVING UNTIL YOU ADD ME!!"

Hey guys, is this the official China bashing thread?

Why is this surprising, anyway? It's China, home of the world's most disgusting media censorship. If the police can arrest bloggers within hours of posting Tibetan independence/Taiwanese nationalism/Falun Gong/Snoop Dogg lyrics, it's no surprise they'd keep a global phenomenon like MySpace under tabs. I'm surprised I got away with posting about Tibet in China myself.

Either way, it's just business in China, which is baffling and deeply disturbing to Westerners like us. Everybody remembers the Yahoo! and Google China fiasco, so it's no surprise Murdoch isn't looking to piss off the country with the largest army in the world, heh.

Let's hope the revolution happens soon enough. The Chinese government sucks dick, but don't take it out on penis sizes.

[Jacobfox]

Originally Posted by Cobol74

Well - News Corp - will never upset the Chinese Govt; they have too many interests (financial) that depend upon friendly relationships with the Chinese Government.

Rupert Murdoch is an asshat.

[liberal noob]

Originally Posted by chaos386

Just one more reason for me not to like MySpace.

Agreed.

[yli]

As for Tibetan independence, it is a very complex issue. Not a black or white thing. You might have read some resources produced by western country on it. But before you draw your conclusion please read some Chinese history on this part, not by westerns.

Taiwanese nationalism, not as complex as Tibetan issue. But still not as easy as you thought. Even local Taiwanese are widely divided on it.

Fa lun Gong, a big fuss to both the government and western medias. I've heard one person say his illness was mysteriously cured by Fa lun gong. I've seen one person who believed Fa Lun Gong refuse to see a doctor when she was badly ill because Fa Lun Gong told her not to. I've been told at least by three people that their relatives left their families in deeply pain because their pursuit of Fa Lun Gong transformed them into a entirely different person who cared nothing but so called Fa Lun Gong. I've told by one of my friend that his mother constantly stayed awake during the whole night to perform Fa Lun Gong, which terrified his family. You see it did some good(well in my case I just heard one arguable good) and it also did some bad to the people.

The point I want to make is that you've got to see both sides of a story before you jump into a conclusion or believe what media says.

Originally Posted by BlaRo

Tibetan independence/Taiwanese nationalism/Falun Gong/Snoop Dogg lyrics,

[jetsetter]

The issue is not what they are posting it is the response of the Chinese government that is worrying.

[yli]

Originally Posted by jetsetter

The issue is not what they are posting it is the response of the Chinese government that is worrying.

Yes, I know. That's why I did not response to the rest part of the post about the government.

I just reply to a specific part of the post which I sense that he has made his mind probably purely on western media or werstern resources he read. Maybe off the topic of this post.