Beijing (AsiaNews/SCMP) China is putting the screws on the media. The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television today told local stations not to use international news material from foreign news services or channels a day after Google announced it was accepting government censorship and reset its search engine to intercept unwelcome words such as 'democracy', 'Tibet' or 'Taiwan'.
In a notice on its website, the mainland's media watchdog reminded regional television stations to restrict their coverage of overseas events to reports by China Central Television and China Radio International, which are controlled by the Communist Party propaganda department. It also warned news broadcasters to "strengthen their political sensitivity" to "ensure a healthy and orderly development of international TV news reporting and maintain a correct propaganda direction".
Google yesterday took the wraps off its Chinese service named 'Gu Ge' or 'Valley Song' answering its critics by saying that it had no choice but to accept restrictions if it wanted to have access to China's internet market.
Google CEO Eric Schmidt said that the search engine will exclude words like Taiwan, Tibet or democracy considered too sensitive for Beijing.
"I think it's arrogant for us to walk into a country where we are just beginning to operate and tell that country how to operate," Mr Schmidt noted. Instead, "it is important to operate Google's worldwide service based on local law and local custom," adding that censorship was a more widespread phenomenon.
None the less, he said he did not "know where (Chinese) revenue growth will be, but it will obviously be large".
Currently, China constitutes the second largest internet market in the world with 111 million usersexpected to become 126 million by the end of the yearand should overtake the United States in two years time.
