Monday, December 8, 2014

Here’s How the Xinhua World News Twitter Feed Responded When Asked How It Circumvents the Great Firewall to Get on Twitter

Update December 8, 2014: There appears to be some question as to whether or not the @XinhuaWorld Twitter account is affiliated with China's Xinhua News Agency.

On July 24, 2013, the state-sponsored Global Times published an article entitled “Hengqin New Area Aims to Skirt Firewall.” According to that article:
Local authorities of the Hengqin New Area in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province confirmed Tuesday that they are planning to bypass the Great Firewall by opening special access to the Internet.
. . . .
If passed, Hengqin will be the first region on the Chinese mainland where local residents can skirt the firewall and get access to blocked websites including Twitter, Facebook and YouTube.
On November 19, 2014, Twitter user Petra Zlatevska posed the following question to fellow Twitter user, Fergus Ryan:
Hey @fryan how does Xinhua post on twitter if it's blocked in China? Always wondered.
Ryan Fergus replied:
Have to ask @XHNews. What VPN are you using @Xinhua_Intl @XinhuanetNews  @Xinhua_English?
This screenshot shows the response that was posted on the Xinhua World News Twitter feed:


Translation: Sun Daluo's Court Judgment for Sharing Books and Articles

The PRC government sentenced Sun Zhiming (孙志明, who wrote under the alias Sun Daluo (孙大骆)) to one year imprisonment for the crime of "di...