China moves towards "real name system" for blogs

[Tyler Durden]

Good luck.

The only practical danger is that many Chinese will gladly comply, making 
anonymity for Bloggers a little dicier.

-TD


>From: "R.A. Hettinga" <rah at shipwright.com>
>To: Philodox Clips List <clips at philodox.com>, cypherpunks at jfet.org
>Subject: China moves towards "real name system" for blogs
>Date: Wed, 25 Oct 2006 00:43:42 -0400
>
><http://today.reuters.co.uk/misc/PrinterFriendlyPopup.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID=2006-10-23T055633Z_01_PEK127187_RTRIDST_0_OUKIN-UK-CHINA-BLOGS.XML>
>
>
>
>China moves towards "real name system" for blogs
>
>Mon Oct 23, 2006 6:56 AM BST
>
>
>BEIJING (Reuters) - The Internet Society of China has recommended to the
>government that bloggers be required to use their real names when they
>register blogs, state media said on Monday, in the latest attempt to
>regulate free-wheeling Web content.
>
>The society, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Information Industry,
>said no decision had been made but that a 'real name system' was 
>inevitable.
>
>"A real name system will be an unavoidable choice if China wants to
>standardise and develop its blog industry," the official Xinhua news agency
>quoted the Internet Society's secretary general, Huang Chengqing, as 
>saying.
>
>"We suggest, in a recent report submitted to the ministry, that a real name
>system be implemented in China's blog industry," Huang said.
>
>China has already imposed some controls on Internet chatter about
>politically sensitive subjects, which often goes far beyond what is
>permissible in the country's traditional state-run media.
>
>Last year, the Ministry of Information Industry issued regulations on
>Internet news content that analysts said was aimed at extending rules
>governing licensed news outlets to blogs and Internet-only news sites.
>
>Participation in university on-line discussion groups has also been
>restricted to students.
>
>Bloggers anonymously disseminating untrue information on the Internet
>brought about a negative influence on society, the Xinhua report said.
>
>Under the proposed rule, users would be required to register under their
>real name to open a blog but would still be allowed to write under a
>pseudonym.
>
>--
>-----------------
>R. A. Hettinga <mailto: rah at ibuc.com>
>The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/>
>44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA
>"... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity,
>[predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to
>experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'

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