Censorship In China Case Study

“A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon." (Bradbury 58) Censorship is the act of suppressing speech, works of literature, music, movies, work of arts, and ideas that are thought to be politically incorrect, offensive, and threatening to society. The United States Constitution states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances ( law.cornell.edu) However, historically, government officials and organizations have been “abridging” our freedoms since the inception of this

Censorship in America is often debated. Erin Manning, texas-based writer explains that the American Library Association chooses to censor certain books because of “inappropriate content” and “second rate writing”(Manning 1). Parents attempt to protect their children from the outside world, by limiting their exposure to age appropriate language. When parents do this, their children’s knowledge of the outside world may be limited to what parents let their child view. Although some parents may feel that their child needs filtered information and entertainment, others believe that children and teens need to be shown uncensored content. Don Gallow, professor of English at Central Connecticut State, suggests that teens should be allowed to access

China is a country well known for Internet blocking or censorship. China blocks 6 huge websites: Google, Wikipedia, The Wall Street Journal, RedTube.com, Linked In, and Facebook. Facebook has been denied in China for couple years as it’s viewed suspiciously as a place to freely disseminate ideas. The main reason to block this social media website is because there are ability to spread rumors. China blocked these websites because the government believed that it would be harder for them to control this global market and rather than creating any social problems, they just blocked and banned people from using . However people living in China use detour application to access Facebook or Google, using IP’s in different country. Chinese government

Humanity is in a perpetual state of trying to make living in the world an easier place. In just a few seconds, people can access information at their disposal, instead of having to look through different books to find what you need. But the question arises; does this boundless place for information honestly make us more informed than before we had the internet? Joe Keohane, the author of the article “How Facts Backfire,” is a political journalist who has also written articles on technology and culture.  He decided to write this article during the midterm election to help educate voters that they need to be better informed about a topic before they make a decision. Nicholas Carr, the author of “Is Google Making Us Stupid,” is an American writer

Carr opens up his argument with his personal struggle to focus on reading the text. Unlike the past when he enjoyed reading lengthy articles easily, he acknowledges that his mind constantly drifts away from the text and that he looks for something else to do. “I’ve been spending a lot of time online, searching and surfing and sometimes adding to the great databases of the Internet....Research that once required days in the stacks or periodical rooms of libraries can now be done in minutes… Even when I’m not working, I’m as likely as not to be foraging in the Web’s info-thickets”(Carr 348). He realizes that the increasing amount of time spending on the Internet has caused his intellectual pain. By exposing his personal experience and analyzing it, he successfully points out the issue he faces.

In the article, “Stop Googling. Let’s Talk.” by Sherry Turkle, it talks about how the impact of phones and technology has on our conversations and interactions with people. Turkle talks about how now a days people divide their attention between multiple things, but the main two examples she uses are phones and conversations. By diving their attention, people rarely dive into deep conversations. They tend to have shallow conversations with people because they are constantly checking their phones at every vibrate or ring, which, in shallow conversations allows them to go in and out of the conversation without missing any important details. Turkle states that, “the mere presence of a phone on a table between them (two people) or in the periphery of their vision changes both what they talk about and the degree of connection they feel.” While this may be true, along with the other studies on how technology is detrimental to society, there as also positives aspects that contribute to society as well.

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury, is a uniquely shocking and provocative novel about a dystopian society set in a future where reading is outlawed, thinking is considered a sin, technology is at its prime, and human interaction is scarce. Through his main protagonist, Guy Montag, Bradbury brings attention to the dangers of a controlled society, and the problems that can arise from censorship. As a fireman, it is Guy's job to destroy books, and start fires rather than put them out. After meeting a series of unusual characters, a spark is ignited in Montag and he develops a desire for knowledge and a want to protect the books. Bradbury's novel teaches its readers how too much censorship and control can lead to further damage and the repetition of history’s mistakes through the use of symbolism, imagery, and motif.

Delbanco gives the example of a Chinese exchange student in class to show how different education is for different countries with different values. The Chinese exchange student explains the main difference when she says, “Coming from a culture in which a ‘standard answer’ is provided for every question, I did not argue with others even when I disagreed” (Delbanco 222). In China, she was discouraged to question her teachings because China is taught to believe what they are taught to be true, until discovered otherwise. It was a shock for her when she arrived in America and the students are openly questioning their professors. If she had not gone to college in America, then she would not have never openly questioned her teachings. This is why China is in trouble. The Chinese people are taking everything at face value. No one is questioning their teachers and without questions the students do not have a full understanding. Another example of the Chinese stuck in an information drought would be one of Applebaum’s example of censorship saying, “the Chinese government also demanded that Microsoft delete the writings of a free-speech advocate from its blog software” (Applebaum 643). Microsoft is only one example of censorship in China. This

Censorship in America can vary between the silencing of young voices and the prevention of exposing others of inappropriate material. Many people are afraid of losing their freedom of speech, as first amendment rights should be mandatory for American citizens. Polar to this argument insists the importance of censorship, as it can shield the public from information that can lead to fear or chaos. Leaving students ignorant to world problems, however, is argued by Sonja West that it removes their first amendment rights and creates a future working-class of Americans who are clouded from the truth. West is a law professor at the University of Georgia who is distinguished for her expertise in the first amendment law and minor in journalism. In her article, “Censorship 101,” West crafts her text through numerous court case experience and skill in rhetorical devices as her background expertise is used to her advantage.

“Somebody 'd written ‘Fuck you’ on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy.” This is a line from the classic novel The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, which has been both praised as a contemporary masterpiece and banned from schools and libraries alike. If this book had never been censored, if it had been accepted for the story and realism within it, then it is possible that other works of art would not be censored today. Limiting expression has been done since leaders discovered that they could exercise such a power. Censorship is detrimental to most people around the world’s well-being because it limits the free flow of information and can inhibit mental maturity.

In a society where children are bombarded with electronics and technology, it can be challenging to convince them to sit down and either read or listen to a story. Reading and hearing stories helps to spark children’s imaginations and dreams. For some children, bedtime stories are not only special for the heroes or princesses they feature, but also for the scheduled time they get to spend one on one with their parent or guardian. In order for children to learn to enjoy reading they must be able to have a choice in what they are able to read. This is something that is taught to them from a young age, whether they are picking a bedtime story or a novel to read at school, it must be something that interests them. Literature should not be classified

Should art be censored? Throughout history, many have felt the need to remove or suppress material that they consider to be morally or politically objectionable, such as books, films, or other materials. They feel that these materials should not be taught in schools or shown in public museums. These people believe no one should be subjected to something that may be against their teachings or beliefs. Others, however, do not feel that these or any works of art should be suppressed. They believe that art and free expression is part of a culture that should be respected. They believe that we should teach and expose all elements of art to the world, and allow free expression.

Misinformation of material given to the public through the internet can have a large impact of the beliefs that society has about their government. Censorship plays a role in hiding or removing material they believe the public should not know about. On the positive side, some countries ban violence through films to perceive a violent-free environment. Also, some country’s purposely remove certain content that shouldn’t be viewed to children because they are the future, and they don’t want violence to be a part of that future. Censorship is quite a controversial topic and has is positive and negative outcomes to society’s around the globe. People may say it’s eliminates our freedom of speech, but some people take advantage of that freedom and should have at least some limitation for what is said on the internet. According to David French, from the National Review, he states,“...freedom of speech does not mean a blanket permission to say anything...it means balancing the inherent value of a given view with the obligation to ensure that other members of a given community can participate”(French). In other words, everyone should express their opinion but in a mannerly style, and that all points of view should be apprehended for everyone’s individual opinion. Censorship’s part in our society is to protect the minds of the public to prevent the violent and traumatization it can

Liberal Democracy is a democratic system of government in which individual rights and freedoms are officially recognized and protected, and the exercise of political power is limited by the rule of law. The word democracy is greek, the word “demos” means people and “kratos” means power. The idea of liberalism first began in the 1600’s with John Locke as he believed that the people should be allowed to remove the government currently ruling when they have misused their power for ulterior motives. Although the seed was planted in the 1600’s, liberal democracy only properly took form in the 1840’s in Canada. Australia and New Zealand followed not long after as they began to use the secret ballot system to elect political leaders. The secret ballot

The People’s Republic of China, governed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), has arguably one of the most restrictive media systems in the world. The government censors all venues of media to maintain its monopoly on power and information while pushing ambitious economic modernization reforms.