Wikipedia Explodes in China
“The Chinese have recently been allowed to enjoy the Chinese version of Wikipedia now that the ban has been lifted. And the result is an explosion in use after being banned for a year. From the article, “Activity on nonprofit Wikimedia Foundation’s Chinese Wikipedia site has skyrocketed since its release, which Internet users in China first started reporting on Nov. 10. Since then, the number of new users registering to contribute to the site has exceeded 1,200 a day, up from an average of 300 to 400 prior to the unblocking. The number of new articles posted daily has increased 75% from the week before, with the total now surpassing 100,000, according to the foundation.” No one’s sure how long this will be available to the People’s Republic of China but hopefully the government will recognize that at least a significant part of the populace enjoys a Wikipedia community.”
That’s all.
January 15th, 2007 at 12:00 pm
When people think of “excitement,” encyclopedias are not usually the first things that come to mind. Truth be told, they might not even be the second thing.
But the fact that the on-line encyclopedia, wikipedia, is now permitted in China has the potential to be very, very exciting.
A non-governmental source of information, such as wikipedia, may provide the Chinese people with information and ideas previously much more difficult to come by. An easily-accessible encyclopedia has the potential to alter people’s perceptions about the world and bring about real changes.
Consider Denis Diderot, for example. During the late 1700s in France, Diderot editted one of the world’s great encyclopedias. He assembled articles not just to spread knowledge but to spread the ideals of the Enlightenment. In doing so, his encyclopedia challenged traditional doctrine of the government. The French government therefore banned Diderot’s encyclopedia, just like the Chinese government banned wikipedia. See Encyclopédie,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encyclop%C3%A9die
The encyclopedia kept going, though, underground. Its influence helped shape public opinion, and some even believe it was a factor in helping to bring about the French Revolution.
Could the internet in general, and wikipedia in particular, be this century’s version of Diderot’s encyclopedia? What will be the result this time around?
February 23rd, 2007 at 2:51 am
Now word is that there is a Wiki search engine on the horizon that could give Google a run for the money…
More on topic, I don’t see how the Chinese Gov’t or any Gov’t for that matter can regulate the internet.. by virtue it is a free flowing mas of information. A flood.
February 23rd, 2007 at 3:06 am
Yet, China is regulating it through a combination of technology and people-power. That’s why dissidents use proxy servers and technologies such as Tor/onion routing to get around the censors.
I think that the free-flowing mass of information has to be backed by a level anonymity, at least for the sake of people trying to mobilize others around basic international human rights.
Thanks for the comments!
May 16th, 2008 at 7:04 am
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