China Cracks Down On ‘Excessive Entertainment’

Satellite broadcasters in China have cut entertainment TV by two-thirds following a government campaign, but many young people are simply switching on their computers instead.

Podcast: The Kiira – Uganda’s Electric Car

Stories this week on Uganda’s electric car, Liberia’s new undersea fiber optic cable, and some Nigerians who are recycling plastic bottles into houses. Also, Syrian web monitoring and an app called Instant WILD.

Turkey cracks down on ‘smut’

Turkey’s Islamist-rooted AKP government has recently begun cracking down on what it considers “smut.”

Russia’s opposition campaigner Boris Nemtsov

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Human rights groups often accuse the Kremlin of trampling citizen’s rights in the name of security. Russian authorities get poor marks in general when it comes to human rights. Today, the group Human Rights Watch described the rights climate in the country as deeply negative. Jessica Golloher reports on Russian politician Boris Nemtsov and his campaign to exercise the rights granted by the Russian constitution. Download MP3

Tech Podcast: Large Hadron Collider…collides!

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The new Tuesday relaunch of the World’s Technology Podcast couldn’t come at a better time. After all, the universe did not wink out of existence today when two beams of protons collided at nearly the speed of light, hundred of feet below the ground at CERN in Switzerland. It’s the Large Hadron Collider, and after more than a year of repairs (and millions more dollars spent), there were some serious collisions today. Collisions that scientists hope will give insights into the very fabric of the universe. (Photo: Harp via Wikipedia)

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The future of online censorship

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By shutting down the Google website in mainland China, the American company has acknowledged how the political and geographical impacts that ultimate nowhere-everywhere space: the Internet. The World’s Alex Gallafent examines how the location of the internet – physical and informational – might shape the future of censorship online. Download MP3

• Beijing slams Google over censorship issue
• Chinese web users boycott Google
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Beijing slams Google over censorship issue

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China has said Google’s move to stop censoring search results is “totally wrong” and accused it of breaking a promise made when it launched in China. The Internet giant is redirecting users in the People’s Republic to its unrestricted Hong Kong site, although Chinese firewalls mean results still come back censored. Beijing said the decision should not affect ties with Washington. Google threatened to leave the Chinese market completely this year after cyber attacks were traced back to China. Mary Kay Magistad reports. Download MP3

• The World’s Technology Podcast: Two Views on Google in China
• BBC coverage

“World of Warcraft” movie and China’s censors

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Some Chinese are calling it the first great Chinese film of 2010. It’s an online satire that has gotten more than a million hits since it went online a week ago. It’s called “The War of Internet Addiction,” and it’s set in Azeroth, the fantasy land where the online game “World of Warcraft” takes place. The hour-long film skewers Chinese officials for trying to censor and control the game. The World’s Mary Kay Magistad reports from Beijing. Download MP3

• Video: Watch the film with English subtitles
• Coverage from China Digital Times

Tech Podcast 274: Mapping Haiti, Google and China

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This week’s podcast features more news on different tech efforts to help relief workers in Haiti. We look at Open Street Map, and Project EPIC’s “Tweak the Tweet.” We also delve into Clinton’s speech on Internet freedom, and get two in-depth views of Google’s recent announcements about China. Also, let us not forget the power of radio in Haiti.

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China criticizes US over Internet freedom

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China has denounced US criticism of its Internet controls, saying it could harm ties between the two countries. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on Thursday for China to lift restrictions on the Internet. Marco Werman talks with Rebecca MacKinnon who is writing a book on the Internet in China. Download MP3

• BBC coverage
• Full text of Clinton’s speech
• Video: Clips from Clinton’s speech
• On The World: Cyrus Farivar’s report on Clinton’s speech

Clinton outlines global Internet freedom policy

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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has harshly criticized China and other countries for restricting Internet access. Mrs Clinton said there had been a recent spike in threats to the free flow of information. She was speaking at the Newseum in Washington, DC in a wide-ranging speech on Internet freedom. Cyrus Farivar reports. Download MP3 (Photo: US State Department)

• Full text of Clinton’s speech
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Google ‘may end China operations’

Internet giant Google has said it may end its operations in China following a “sophisticated and targeted” cyber attack originating from the country. In Beijing, the news prompted some to leave flowers outside of Google’s offices. We’ll check in with our correspondent in Beijing, and our reporter in San Francisco. (Photo by youthfilm)

• More coverage from the BBC
• Google’s official statement
• Have Your Say: Should Google pull out of China?

China’s media strategy

Anchor Lisa Mullins speaks with Xiao Qiang director of the University of California, Berkeley’s China Internet Project, about China’s strategy for handling media coverage of the protests in western China. He says the Chinese government is allowing international journalists to cover the unrest, while cracking down on press coverage.
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Helping Iranians bypass web censorship

Correspondent Cyrus Farivar reports on how technology activists around the globe are working to help Iranians bypass their government’s Internet censorship.
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Iran protests

Entire program – July 1, 2009

Today on The World: China steps back from requiring computer makers to install Internet filtering software on every new computer; the debate heats up in Europe over the benefits, real or imagined, of increased biofuel production; and an Islamic take on the evolution vs creationism debate. Listen