China Bans Ghosts From Internet
Ban on horrific content follows porno crackdown
By: Mike Albo
Posted: 02/14/2008
BEIJING – Continuing its crackdown on the
Internet, China
has added ghosts and monsters to a growing list of prohibited audio and video
on its citizens' computers. The crackdown is in preparation for this summer's
Olympic Games to be held in Beijing.
Content
producers are being given less than a month look through their tapes and report
"horror" to authorities, according to a statement by the
General Administration of Press and Publications that was posted on a
government website.
According
to the statement, offending content includes, "wronged spirits and violent
ghosts, monsters, demons, and other inhuman portrayals, strange and
supernatural storytelling for the sole purpose of seeking terror and
horror."
The
purpose of the new regulations is to "control and cleanse the negative
effect these items have on society, and to prevent horror, violent, cruel
publications from entering the market through official channels and to protect
adolescents' psychological health." In other words, China's doing
it for the kids…in part.
These regulations come on the
heels of Beijing's
lockdown on "vulgar" content.
But, hey, before all we
round-eyes get indignant, let's remember this is CHINA! The country that brought you
the Cultural Revolution has never really been known for its record concerning
human rights as we see them in the West. Smarten up.
