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The potential of Microblogging to become a milestone

2010-03-28 – toadi

Editor note: below is a translation of Beijing News’ interview with Hu Yong, a Beijing University Professor, on the potential of micro-blogging in political engagement in China.

The potential of Microblogging to become a milestone

If the BBS was the first milestone, then microblogging certainly has the potential to become the second. The meaning behind the microblog becoming a milestone, is in the way it spreads information.

BJ News: You have long been concerned about the development of the Internet; how do you view this emerging microblogging communication tool?

Hu Yong: Microblogging is a new form of communication, with four characteristics, I believe.

First it is speed-oriented. This represents a new trend of Internet development. Traditional media have the issue of “news cycles”, for example, newspapers go by the day; while microblogging is almost without the limit of a cycle. It is a real-time network. In the amount of information, transmission speed, etc., traditional media cannot compare.

The second is fragmentation. This is a big impact on the thinking; in the past, mass media disseminated information from the centre and outwards; for example, say a certain unexpected event occurs, the media need to send reporters to investigate and then publish the information in the newspapers, which is then reproduced on the network, followed by online reproduction by peers. In this case, the initial media is the “centre”. But now, there might happen to be microbloggers at the scene of many unexpected events, who can instantly transmit information. Perhaps they were previously unknown, insignificant citizens, but suddenly they may become the hub of information, resulting in the greatest impact in an instant.

The third is directness. That there is no intermediary makes it very direct. For example, a person becomes a fan of his or her favorite star; they want to receive more information about the star, even hoping to have dialogue with the star, but before the birth of the microblog, the existence of mediators such as celebrity agents and the like made it difficult to achieve. Microblogging makes it all become possible. Another example is expression in traditional media; originally there are layers of intermediaries, but now microbloggers can go straight into the topic. Those who set up microblog accounts should also mentally prepare themselves for the flurry of uncensored challenges.

Fourthly, micro-power. In my view, micro-power is not anything else, but that everyone should take responsibility. Micro- is every ordinary citizen. Power – refers to nothing else, but rather that regardless of the thousands of language in this world, the only thing that can change the world is action. Driven by “micro-information” and “micro-exchanges”, “micro-power” will have a healthy impact on China’s social development.

BJ News: The 1999 bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia directly pushed the inception of the People’s Daily Online’s “Forum on Making the Country Prosperous”, even called the “first milestone” of Internet development by “People’s Daily former deputy chief editor Zhou Ruijin. During the Two Sessions, the use of microblogging in politics is called the “second milestone” by some. How do you see it?

Hu Yong: If the BBS was the first milestone, microblogging has of course the potential to become a second milestone. Though this milestone may not necessarily be an accurate statement; in fact, before microblogging there was the blog, video sharing and other major developments on the Internet.

The “milestone” potential I speak of here, mainly refers to the level of information dissemination. However, the issue cannot be absolute. Similarly, an Internet chronicle written by different people will produce different results; written with different values, the results will not be the same either.

From the Two Sessions, you can see the microblog budding and raising some new questions on the political civilization process. For example, representatives opening microblog accounts; in truth, only dozens of individuals were active users, yet the “two sessions” is on a scale of thousands, putting it out of proportion.

The Power of Microblogging to nurture citizens of new thought

The Two Sessions should be the concern of all citizens. Not just hoping that it does well and receives flowers and applause, but there is a need to try and understand and accept challenges, so that the people are no longer only watching it as an outsider, but rather as an active participant in politics.

BJ News: During this Two Sessions, microblogging sprang up like mushrooms after the rain, rapidly developing (from the one hosted by Sina to more than ten microblogging sites). Four new features emerged: as a new way for representatives to perform their duties (offering public proposals as well as behind-the-scenes trivia); as a new form of news dissemination for the news media (opening official microblogs, establishing microblog columns and layout in newspapers); as a new platform for citizen participation in politics (virtual proposals were submitted; interaction with council members); and a new interactive way for the press to investigate stories (setting topics to get user comments). How do you see this?

Hu Yong: Microblogging was of great significance in the Two Sessions. You just summed up the meaning of it in the four characteristics quite precisely. Lets say, as committee representatives and the media were both using microblogs to discuss the Two Sessions, microblogs became the gauge of public opinion evaluation, one the one hand collecting social data and public sentiments, and on the other, also observing the trend of public opinion.

However, we cannot blindly exaggerate the use and meaning of the microblog in the Two Sessions. After all, there have been individual officials using the Internet to put on a big political show, raising the possibility that microblogs could just become the next big show. For example, senior officials become concerned about the network, and the next day all units set up their own websites; senior officials become concerned about the blog, and the next day their official blogs are given red flags all over the Internet; now whether the same will happen with microblogs, it is hard to say.

BJ News: You mentioned earlier a new term, “micro-power”?

Hu Yong: Why is “micro-power” important? In the past, a few highly motivated people working with a mass with almost no passion, often led to frustrating results. The passionate folk do not understand why the public is not more concerned, and the public does not understand why these obsessed activists cannot shut up.

Today, those with a high degree of enthusiasm should be committed to reducing the threshold of action, so that the people who care a little can take a little part, and all efforts put together will be a strong one. This represents the citizens’ new way of thinking.

Beijing News: Your talk about new thinking citizens has given people a lot of inspiration.

Hu Yong: The Two Sessions is a serious political event; previously, participation of the people was limited, but in fact, the Two Sessions should be the concern of all citizens. Not just hoping that it will receive flowers and applause, but to be able to understand and accept challenges, so that the people are no longer an observing outsider, but active participants in politics.

Broadly speaking, government departments have to face Internet opinions, cope with what they can, and for that which they do not know how to respond to, they still cannot avoid it. For instance, in last year’s “Two Sessions”, Shaanxi kept being questioned about the “Tiger Zhou incident” (about doctored photos of the near-extinct South China Tiger), Deputy Director of Propaganda Department Wu Hao was repeatedly asked about the “Hide and Seek” incident” (about the truth behind a detainee’s death). These network hot spots have to be dealt with candidly, as they are but online manifestations of real-life problems.

“Microblogging in politics” needs to be tested with time

Only when the majority of representatives and officials are using this tool of microblogging, and when they are used to the operations of the microblog, the ways of thinking and the rules of the game, will the era of microblogging in politics truly arrive.

BJ News: In any case, in an occasion like the Two Sessions, the microblog was still fired up. If you say the “Two Sessions influence China”, then can you say, “the microblog influences the Two Sessions”?

Hu Yong: If the majority of representatives used microblogs, we can say, “the microblog influenced the Two Sessions”. This time, the microblog became a hot topic in the Two Sessions, it was mainly in this specific period of time — during the Two Sessions, with a specific group of people — a small number of Two Sessions representatives, using it first.

The discussions and suggestions towards the Two Sessions made by netizens through the microblog should be highlighted. I’m afraid future Two Sessions will have to get used to the public eye.

BJ News: One of the highlights of this year’s Two Sessions was that many of the media talked about “microblog political discussions”, or “microblog in politics”, is this accurate?

Hu Yong: Talking about the microblog in politics, or microblog political discussions, involves a range of issues, such as who is discussing politics, who is being discussed, and how it is discussed. After all, the discussion of views, the expression of public opinion, are not “democracy” in the political sense of the word. After all, the collection of online public opinion does not make for a democratic system.

The microblog is just a microcosm of social reality; in order to solve the issues mentioned in microblogs, more needs to be done in real life. To rely on the system’s pathway to push for the realisation of democracy, that is the real “microblog in politics”, the real use of microblogging to promote the process of political civilization.

BJ News: In other words, when we talk about this point, we need to import some considerations of political science?

Hu Yong: Yes, we need to quantify the political discussion, it requires scientific assessment.

For example, the “virtual proposals” offered on microblogs, or the recommendations made to representatives, need to be followed up and explored; whether they turn into proposals and motions supported by the representatives, whether they can be transformed into final results, whether they will withstand the test of time.

BJ News: Why?

Hu Yong: Because the microblog is a public platform, which can effectively cultivate civic spirit, highlight the “four powers” (ie, safeguard the people’s right to information, participation, expression and right to supervise), allow for participation in politics, or at least can be used make some sound; otherwise, people may only be marginalized to a bystander’s role.

BJ News: What is your ideal “microblog in politics” like?

Hu Yong: Only when the majority of representatives and officials are using the microblog as a tool, and get used to its mode of operation, ways of thinking and rules of the game, will the era of microblog in politics truly arrive.

One way to test it, is to see if those active representatives and official media will stop using microblogs after the Two Sessions; it may become abandoned just as blogs were, or even become the dust of history like some government websites that are never updated.

http://www.scmp.com/portal/site/SCMP/menuitem.2af62ecb329d3d7733492d9253a0a0a0/?vgnextoid=ca9ffcf6a8b87210VgnVCM100000360a0a0aRCRD&ss=China&s=News

‘Great Firewall’ unmoved by Google’s action

Shi Jiangtao in Beijing

Mar 24, 2010

Google’s decision to move its simplified-Chinese search service to an uncensored site in Hong Kong grabbed headlines around the world yesterday but it meant little to tens of millions of mainland internet users and failed to change the censorship regime it set out to challenge.

Hours after the California-based internet giant made public its decision to end self-censorship in China, the famed image of the “Tiananmen tank man” did not pop up on screens nationwide – as some anticipated earlier. Nor were mainland internet users denied the Google service altogether – as others once feared.

Visitors to Google.cn are being automatically redirected to Google’s Hong Kong site, which provides uncensored search results in English, traditional Chinese and simplified Chinese. Mainland users can use the search service as before, with sensitive results blocked by the central government instead of Google.

For millions of mainland users, the subtle difference is negligible. In sharp contrast with the fanfare two months ago when Google dropped a bombshell by announcing it planned to “pull out” from the mainland to protest against excessive internet policing and hacking activities, its latest announcement generated little buzz.

For those living inside the notorious “Great Firewall of China”, “Google’s new home in China” is not a promised land where information flows free. To get forbidden information, they have to do what they have always done – use proxy servers to bypass the government censorship, also known as “scaling the wall”.

“It creates a bit [more] inconvenience but it will not change my life at all,” said Li Wei, a 25-year-old computer engineer. who was one of a few dozen onlookers gathering at Google China’s headquarters in Beijing.

Analysts are divided over how Google’s decision will shape the mainland’s internet development in the long run. Zhao Jing, an internet researcher, called it a slap in the face for Beijing, while Hu Yong, from Peking University, said its impact remained unclear.

But the impact on Google’s mainland business was more immediate and pronounced.

Shortly after the US company’s announcement, Tom Online, a mainland internet firm controlled by Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing, said it had ended its affiliation with Google. Analysts said it was possible that Google’s plans for other services in China, such as its Android smartphone software, could be endangered by the relocation of its search service.

“We see this as increasing or ratcheting up tension between the two parties,” Colin Gillis, an analyst at BGC Financial, said. “You sort of make China look like the bad guy and you think you’re going to be selling Google phones? Good luck, we’ll see how that goes.”

In the bigger scheme of Sino-US relations, experts said the Google incident would probably only play a marginal role.

http://globalvoicesonline.org/2010/02/22/china-mobilizing-mothers-for-censorship/

China: Mobilizing mothers for censorship

Monday, February 22nd, 2010 @ 07:48 UTC

by Oiwan Lam

On January 19th 2010, the Beijing Association of online media established a group called Mama Jury to censor obscene and pornographic information online. According to report from Southern Weekend, the idea of organizing mothers to “protect” the children from pornography is originated from Western countries. However, the Chinese mother group is run by the CCP associated organization rather than by independent civic group compared to its western counterpart.

Yang Heng Jun questions the legitimacy of the “government-mother cooperation system”:

第一，谁授权给你们来“评审”互联网内容的？第二，你认为自己未成年孩子不能看的内容就应该删除？网站就应该关闭？难道全中国人民都不能看？哪怕那内容是《宪法》保障我们看、《刑法》不禁止我们看的内容？

First of all, who gives you the authority to “rate” the Internet content? Secondly, do you think what is unsuitable for your kids should be deleted? and those websites should be closed? Should they be banned from all the Chinese people? Even if the contents are protected by our “constitution” and not prohibited by “Criminal Law”?

让我们进一步发挥所谓“孩子利益优先”的原则，既然你们用这个原则来治理整顿虚拟的互联网，那么我有理由质问你们：为什么不用这种方式对付更多孩子们生活其中的真实社会

Let’s elaborate on the principle of “children’s interest come first”. If you adopt such principle to run the Internet, why don’t you apply such principle to govern the real world where our children live?

你可以限制自己的孩子上互联网，但你不能以“儿童利益优先”的名义把互联网变成一个只适合你孩子的学习园地和迪斯尼乐园，那是违反《宪法》也违反人性的。……当我们把互联网和社会 变成只适合儿童的时候，儿童不但不会成长，而且，我们成人也会变成“儿童”……

You can restrict your children from going online, but you cannot turn the Internet into a kindergarten or disneyland under the principle of “Children’s interest comes first”… It is against the constitution and against the humanity. If we turn the Internet and the society into something that “suitable” for the children, our children would not grow up, and our adult would turn into “children”….

Hu Yong elaborates on Yang’s argument:

政府的这一举措明显是要“花季护航”全国人民，把自己摆在为人家长的位置上……“深入整治低俗”是一场无情的运动， 不知有多少网站在去冬今春的寒风中哀号，然而，妈妈们在运动中的出现不仅为之涂上了一层温情色彩，似乎也赋予其更多的正当性。这是因为，妈妈们竖起的大旗是“保护未成年人”，占据了社会道德的制高点。

It is obvious that the government is trying to “escort” the whole country by positioning itself as the “parent”… The anti-vulgarity campaign is very harsh and many websites are tormenting in the cold winter. However, having the mothers holding the moral flag of “protecting the children” would help legitimating the campaign.

To many concerned citizens, “Children’s interest comes first” is a mere hypocritical political slogan to censor the Internet. When confronted with real issues, such as the melamine poisonous milk scandal, the government is not on the side of the parent and children. Chang Ping points out that the father, Zhao Lianhai, who investigated on the melamine poisonous milk incident was arrested in November 2009. Chang Ping resents why all these pro-censorship mothers who claimed that they loved their children did not step out to support Zhao? And more ironically, the former head of General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), Li Changjiang, who resigned after the poisonous milk scandal, has recently been appointed as the vice head of the working team against pornographic and illegal information.

Laotuzaizi echoes with Chang Ping’s comment and suggests that the government should opened itself to the monitoring of “mothers”:

何不将“妈妈评审团”改为“妈妈官员监督团”派下去，派到卫生部、质检总局、工商总局，让她们去像监管网民那样监管部长局长处长那些当官的，准管用。别不放心，老秦不跟你们争权夺利，“妈妈官员监督团”可由全国妇联代行管理。

“妈妈官员监督团”完全可以请些下岗女工、家庭妇女，还能解决不少就业问题。“妈妈官员监督团”比起成立国务院食品安全委员会要更省钱，更实用，更解决问题。一物降一物，官员怕民妇。

Why don’t we change the Mama Jury into Mama for Government Monitor. Let’s send our mothers to the Ministry of Health, AQSIQ, the State Administration of Industry & Commerce. Let them monitor the head of department, bureau and office like the way they monitor the netizens. It would definitely work. Don’t worry, I won’t compete power with you. Let the mothers be under the supervision of the National Federation of Women.

You can hire the laid-off woman workers, housewives to the Mother Monitor team. It can solve a lot of employment problem. It is more economical and practical than setting up the State Council Food Safety Commission. Every kind of being has its natural enemy. Chinese government officials are naturally fearful of ordinary women.

South China Morning Post

Friday March 5 2010

Delegates take tentative step to using new media with microblogs

Ivan Zhai

Sheng Lianxi was posting on his microblog about an hour after the opening ceremony of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference on Wednesday.

‘The CPPCC is paying more attention to the problems concerning people’s livelihoods,’ he told his readership of more than 5,900.

Some might view the posts by Sheng – the Communist Party secretary of Northeast Normal University in Changchun, Jilin province – as propaganda, but the key is the tool he used. He is among the first delegates to the CPPCC or the National People’s Congress to communicate using new media.

Following their top leaders, including President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, mainland officials and delegates are turning to the internet to reach out to the public and make their voices heard. Blogs, webcasting and online interviews are becoming increasingly popular as, by the end of last year, the mainland had 380 million internet users, more than any other country.

When Hu became the first to visit and chat with internet users on the website of the People’s Daily in June 2008, communications experts said it reflected how the government was adapting to the internet era and starting to use the new tools to collect public opinion.

Wen spoke with internet users for the second year on Sunday as state media said the premier’s ‘online chat’ before the annual sessions of the CPPCC and NPC, two of the most important annual political events in China, might become routine.

About 10 of more than 2,000 CPPCC representatives and four of nearly 3,000 NPC delegates are posting on two of the mainland’s biggest microblog platforms, most of them registered just a few days ahead of this year’s sessions.

Sheng, who first posted on Monday, had contributed 20 posts by last night, and the one he sent on Tuesday night earned him the most feedback, as 98 microbloggers commented on his request for suggestions on his proposal this year: ‘We are asking for advice on the educational reform and development outline. Any good ideas?’

According to a People’s Daily survey early this week, more than 90 per cent of the 97 NPC delegates who responded said they considered new media ‘important for them to gather information’ from the people.

Analysts said it would also be interesting to see how the new online tools – such as microblogs and other social networking systems, which were used effectively for US President Barack Obama’s campaign victory in 2008 – would change China.

Wang Zechu, an adviser to the Guangdong government, said officials’ efforts to engage internet users was just one of the ways the public can become involved in politics.

‘I believe the reliable way of involving people in politics is still the representative system, not just collecting public opinion online,’ he said.

Beijing-based internet expert Hu Yong agreed. ‘We do not know how the delegates can really represent the public nor how the public opinion they collect will impact policymaking, so we shouldn’t give the trend too much significance.’

http://www.danwei.org/media/hu_yong_interview.php

Hu Yong (胡泳) is associate professor at Peking University’s School of Journalism and Communication, and a pioneering developer of China’s Internet. He has worked for a number of media, including Sanlian Lifeweek, China Daily, China Internet Weekly and CCTV.

A respected authority in his field, Hu Yong has published widely. He authored Internet: The King Who Rules, the first book introducing the Internet to Chinese readers, as well as several other best-selling books concerning Internet economy.

He is also the translator of several groundbreaking English books on digital technology, including Being Digital and Release 2.0: A Design for Living in the Digital Age. His most recent book is The Rising Cacophony: Personal Expression and Public Discussion in the Internet Age, documenting the major transformations in the Chinese cyberspace.

A frequent speaker at IT events and management conferences, Hu Yong is active in industry affairs. He is co-founder of the Digital Forum of China, a nonprofit organization that promotes public awareness of digitalization, and advocates a free and responsible Internet. In 2000, Hu Yong was nominated for China’s list of top Internet industry figures.

Hu Yong’s academic honors include China Media Project Visiting Fellow, Journalism and Media Studies Centre, The University of Hong Kong, and China Internet Project Visiting Fellow, Graduate School of Journalism, The University of California, Berkeley. He is a founding director for Communication Association of China (CAC) and China New Media Communication Association (CNMCA).

For Danwei Hu Yong agreed to answer questions about being a veteran China journalist who has been engaged in State media, and as a founder of Sanlian Lifeweek. Hu Yong talked about the current state and hopes of journalism in China, as well as his thoughts on the future of the Internet in China, and how it will shape a healthier society. Translation of the interview is below, and the original Chinese transcript here.

Danwei: You have had a long career in the media in China, previously a senior writer for Sanlian Lifeweek (三联生活周刊), the editor-in-chief of Global Executive Journal (环球管理), the main producer for CCTV’s Economic News program (经济新闻联播), and chief strategist for Dialogue program (对话) for CCTV. You obviously have garnered a very good understanding of the Chinese media. Why did you switch from being a journalist to teaching at PKU?

Hu Yong: In the early days of the nineties, non-government controlled commercial media was rising, and I participated in the founding of Sanlian Lifeweek and wanted to make it China’s Time Magazine in three to five years. Today, some of China’s serious magazines, such as Caijing (财经) and Sanlian Lifeweek, are successful commercially. Even today I think commercialization was a kind of energy or force for the liberation of Chinese media: when media relies more on advertisement and distribution, and not on the financial support of the government, they respond more to audiences and readers. Of course we have to be aware of the negative connotations of commercialization over the past few years too.

I went through all this, from working in the media to teaching at a university. I personally think that media is young people’s work, which doesn’t dismiss the fact that there are people with a ton of experience working in the industry. Still, the industry is structured around young people. Really the younger you are, the stronger your ability to grasp new technology.

Concerning the professional careers of media workers, my view is that they only have two way-outs: one, if you have accumulated enough experience, you can try to be the leader of a certain media company, or create your own media. In other words you can direct and instruct those who are even younger, in the role of boss, editor-in-chief, producer and such. Other people might vote for going down the professional route; they want to become an “expert” journalist in a particular field, or an editor with a specialization.

https://caonima.ws/2009/12/zhan-bin-%E8%A9%B9%E8%86%91-2009-word-of-the-year-wall-climb-push-topple/

Zhan Bin (詹膑): 2009 Character of the Year: Wall, Climb, Push/Tweet, Topple

Zhan Bin (詹膑) teaches at the Business School of the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology and has been blogging since 2003. He wrote the following post on his Roaming and Hunting (游山打猎) blog, translated by CDT’s Paulina Hartono:

Today, Hu Yong came to Story Garden cafe to participate in the “NGO salon.” When he spoke about the “character of the year,” not only did it recall “character of the year” discussions from the past few years, but it seemed as if ["character of the year" discussions] had already become a classic topic. Speaking about this is brings some sadness, because when we had our first discussion, “Great Firewall” had attracted everyone’s attention and garnered many votes. At that time, the word picked was “blocked.”(封)

Getting “blocked” isn’t just restricted to the internet; it also happens in real life. Therefore, Hu Yong likewise supported the character “wall (墙),” as it exists both online and offline, using different mechanisms and methods. I kind of wanted to cast my vote for “climb” (翻) since never before had so many people learned how to use proxies, learned how to climb over the Great Firewall, understood Tor [The Onion Router] and other similar tools. Never before had so many people learned how to fix hosts, learned about API and how to use all kinds of Twitter API access methods. It’s similar offline, as many people are thinking about how to “climb over the wall” in their own lives, and search for their own place and worth.

As a result, my 2009 “character of the year” pick was “climb.” I also wanted to propose having a “climbing methodology.” Sometimes, resistance produces martyrs, so all the more we need methods, tact, humor, deconstruction, guerilla warfare … in this way, power can accumulate and bring more value to society, allowing it to have the opportunity to improve.

Yes, many people are using the “push/tweet” method, such as Ai Weiwei. [In Chinese, "tweet" and "push" are also homynyms.] I salute him and others. It’s not just about making the actual “push,” but more importantly, it’s using Twitter to be an online media tool, having a community approach, and having real-time communication forecast a greater communication and strength. Further, media, communities, and society per se are valuable, and have also described an online future.

One of my friends on Twitter asked, “When will the character of the year be ‘topple (倒)’?”

Update: I strongly advocate the following character, it better represents the spirit of 2009.

[The character is not a real one, but a made-up character, mixing elements of the following three characters: "grass", "mud" and "horse". ]