[updates below]
As Tibet transitioned into total lockdown and videos of the violent situation proliferated on YouTube, people began noticing Saturday afternoon in China that the video-sharing website could not be accessed.
Tech blogger Rick Martin on the CNET Asia Little Red Blog has done some tests which confirm what many have assumed:
There were some videos uploaded to Youtube already about the demonstrations, but this block will definitely throw a wrench anyone's plans to upload more. That said, Chinese versions of Youtube, which have been told to censor this kind of sensitive content, are all still up and running as I write this.
At the same time, other tech bloggers have noticed increased sensitivity online in general recently.
Which begs the question of authorities in Beijing: just how stupid do you think people are?
March 17 update:
Jeremy Goldkorn at Danwei.org has been following closely reports of further problems people in China have been having online:
Youtube is blocked, the websites of The Guardian and L.A. Times newspapers are not currently accessible in Beijing; we have reader reports of the Yahoo home page not loading from around the country.
See the comments on Goldkorn's post for feedback from around the country, and many more on his earlier post.
March 23: Bloggers in China began reporting Saturday that YouTube can once again be accessed. However, as Martin points out and others have noticed, what's being seen at present is only a partial recovery.
[...] John Kennedy at Global Voices confirms the YouTube block: As Tibet transitioned into total lockdown and videos of the violent situation proliferated on [...]
posted on March 16th, 2008 at 7:59 pm - #8832[...] many times, and survived. Time to turn on your VPN again, people! An* John Kennedy at Global Voices confirms the YouTube block:As Tibet transitioned into total lockdown and videos of the violent situation proliferated on [...]
posted on March 16th, 2008 at 11:09 pm - #8833[...] sites de news comme Global Voices, CNet Asia, et Shanghaiistont signalé un blocage complet de YouTube depuis la Chine. Il semblerait [...]
posted on March 17th, 2008 at 9:30 am - #8835[...] werden können, hat die Regierung bereits am Samstag den Zugang blockiert, bestätigt etwa auch von Global Voices. Wer in China die Website von YouTube aufruft, erhält angeblich nur eine leere [...]
posted on March 17th, 2008 at 12:39 pm - #8839[...] responded to the blocking of YouTube by the Chinese government. Blogger blue_k_i comments: 「安全上の懸念」でないことは明らかです。 [...]
posted on March 17th, 2008 at 5:04 pm - #8840People in China are snaping up personal vpn accounts from provders like hotspot sheild, surfbouncer, relaaks, secure vpn and such. They blow right through all the expensive filters and can’t be stopped. For evry action thre is a reaction. For every problem there is a solution.
posted on March 18th, 2008 at 4:12 am - #8843[...] que rutinariamente bloquea los medios de comunicación occidentales y sitios de internet como YouTube y Flickr, y que ha hecho énfasis en mostrar imágenes de disturbios en sus noticieros. [...]
posted on March 19th, 2008 at 5:56 am - #8864People in China are snaping up personal vpn accounts from provders like hotspot sheild, surfbouncer, relaaks, secure vpn and such. They blow right through all the expensive filters and can’t be stopped. For evry action thre is a reaction. For every problem there is a solution.
posted on August 8th, 2008 at 8:27 am - #10767John Kennedy at Global Voices confirms the YouTube block: As Tibet transitioned into total lockdown and videos of the violent situation proliferated
posted on August 8th, 2008 at 1:00 pm - #10775It was a mistake! They didn’t block it. It was a provocation.
posted on November 1st, 2008 at 6:57 am - #13933[...] Global Voices Online RSS Feed Subscribe by Email [...]
posted on March 24th, 2009 at 4:16 pm - #15253No…I live in China. IT IS BLOCKED.
posted on March 25th, 2009 at 8:03 am - #15263I’m sick and tired of this internet bullshit china keeps shoving on my throat. I am a westerner, i live here and i have all my family and friends in facebook and i make youtube videos, why are those fucking assholes keep blocking those websites when they allow baidu and youku streaming FULL movies with no thought about copyrights. Im really sick of this bullshit and those shenenigans supposdly “commie” china pulls on the internets. I’m in shanghai there’s hookers and bitches wherever i turn where i live, and that is supposed to be illegal here, hello? china? go fuck your fake commie clowning ass and stop bother the living shit out of me, give us back our sites, pigs.
posted on August 30th, 2009 at 1:39 pm - #19840