China Nudges Accused Video Pirates Down the Plank, Stirring Frustration Over Censorship

An effort by police to shut down a pipeline for pirated articles has resurrected discussion all-around censorship in China, opening a window into the anxieties felt by quite a few Chinese as the region grows extra inward-seeking less than chief Xi Jinping.

For numerous months, authorities in Shanghai have been investigating members of Renren Yingshi, a sprawling community of translators that gives uncensored overseas Television set displays and motion pictures to hundreds of thousands of Chinese less than the guise of instruction, over suspected copyright violations.

The probe attracted little notice until previously this thirty day period, when Shanghai police issued a notice revealing the detentions of extra than a dozen men and women as part of the investigation. The announcement established off an outpouring of anguished messages from supporters on line, like on Weibo, a preferred Twitter -like platform, exactly where the hashtag “Renren Yingshi investigated for pirated videos” attracted 800 million views in a lot less than 24 several hours.

“Salute to all those people who have aided us open up the doorway to the globe in all eras,” Yan Feng, a literature professor at Shanghai’s prestigious Fudan University, wrote in a Weibo publish to his extra than 5 million followers.

“How about giving us a authorized and uncensored avenue rather?” questioned a further person, whose remark gained extra than 23,600 likes.