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Social media plays an integral role in the Peoples Republic of China. WeChat, for example, is the most popular messaging app in China with over one billion active users. It has become increasingly popular among doctors, who use it to share knowledge with their peers.

Nonetheless, when doctors voiced their concerns about the spread of COVID-19 back in December 2019, information on the spread of the outbreak was censored on Chinese social media. The Chinese public was kept in the dark for three weeks until January 21, when Peoples Daily, Chinas national newspaper, mentioned the COVID-19 outbreak the same day that Chinas president, Xi Jinping, publicly acknowledged that it was a problem.

The University of Torontos Citizen Lab is an interdisciplinary research laboratory at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy. In the past, its reports have uncovered digital security and human rights violations, including a co-investigation with Whatsapp into spyware targeting journalists.

Researchers from the Citizen Lab investigated COVID-19 censorship on Chinese social media where some of the first reported cases of information control occurred during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Key findings: 516 WeChat keyword combinations censored

Reports of Chinese government suppression of COVID-19 information emerged early into the Wuhan outbreak. The Citizen Lab report released on March 3 investigates how this censorship occurred on two social media platforms: the messaging service application WeChat and the live-streaming platform YY.

The report found that as early as December 31, 2019, the day after Dr. Li Wenliang and colleagues reported the outbreak in WeChat groups, YY began censoring 45 keywords that referenced COVID-19. These included terms pertaining to factual description of COVID-19 as well as references to the Huanan Seafood Market in Wuhan, the location considered as the source of the novel coronavirus.

For WeChat, researchers found that the scope of censorship increased in the period from January 1 to February 15, in which 516 keyword combinations were censored. Censored WeChat content covered a wide range of topics, including references to the top leaders in China responsible for handling the outbreak, along with any mentions of government policies in regard to handling the outbreak.

The scope of the censorship also extended to blocking references to COVID-19 in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau; factual information about COVID-19; references to Dr. Li Wenliang; calls for petition; and related speculative information.

While some blocked keyword combinations included critical content regarding government policies or top leaders handling of the outbreak, the Citizen Lab reported that combinations of neutral terms, such as [+] [+] [+] [+] , which translates to Pneumonia + [Chinese Premier] Li Keqiang + Wuhan + Premier + Beijing, were also blocked from use on the site.

Methodology and consequences

The Varsity contacted the researchers about the evidence used to arrive at the conclusion of censorship.

We used reverse-engineering and sample testing to track censorship on WeChat and YY, Lotus Ruan, one of the researchers, wrote. As such, we were able to observe what keywords triggered censorship on each platform. We then performed content analysis on these keywords to contextual [sic] our findings.

Such censorship is damaging, given that WeChat is integral to many peoples lives in China. Having readily available information enables clinicians to optimize the treatment of their patients, and it allows epidemiologists to offer real-time guidance on how to contain the outbreak, including allowing for their assessments of various interventions.

The broad censorship may restrict vital communication related to disease information and prevention among users and end up harming public health, Ruan wrote.

For example, while scientific literature demonstrated human-to-human transmission, local authorities failed to promptly inform the public. As a result, more than five million people left Wuhan for Chinese New Year or other reasons, spreading the novel coronavirus both within Wuhan and internationally.

WeChat and YY did not respond to The Varsitys requests for comment.

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How the spread of COVID-19 was censored on Chinese social media - Varsity

Your support for the Center for Science & Culture has allowed us to reach an enormous audience. Now, because of our impact, the censors have turned their gaze on Evolution News.

An article in the journal BioEssays demands Internet censorship of sources sharing evidence of design in biology. The author of the article says that if Big Tech entities (Google, Facebook) shy away from prejudicial treatment of ID, then the government should step in and Make them.

ID scientists, from their personal experience, would have told you it was only a matter of time. The upcoming Memorial Day weekend is a time for reflection about sacrifice. While heroes of the U.S. Armed Forces have given their lives, the scholars who critique scientific atheism and advance the theory of ID offer of themselves in different ways. They risk destruction of careers and reputations.

Please take a moment to consider them in your prayers, and in your own giving.

Im thinking of colleagues and friends who left perches in academia, or were thrown out for heresy: Stephen Meyer, Douglas Axe, Ann Gauger, John West, Gnter Bechly, Richard Sternberg, and more. Others miraculously survive in their universities, despite the curses and arrows directed at them: David Gelernter at Yale, Michael Behe at Lehigh, Michael Egnor at Stony Brook.

They all would have been prudent to stay safe, masked and sheltering in place. Or better yet, go along with the Darwinist mob! Thats a great way to get ahead.

Think of the ominous transformation we see today: many people now consider supporting the right to free speech as controversial and divisive! Please help us by contributing to Discovery Institutes Center for Science & Culture today.

Im grateful to be part of this enterprise that brings the thought of Darwin skeptics and ID scientists to millions. We do so through websites like Evolution News, which I edit, on YouTube, in live presentations and video conferences, books, journals, and other publications.

Our culture trembles between recognizing and denying the purpose and meaning behind life. Meanwhile, electronic media pump out propaganda for nihilism. Its a sickness, and good science, widely publicized, is the cure.

Your generous gift now will help deliver that cure. Your donation of $50, $500, or $5,000 whatever you can afford at this very difficult time for us all is crucial. Thank you!

Photo: Stephen Meyer, David Gelernter, and David Berlinski, Uncommon Knowledge with Peter Robinson, via Hoover Institution, Stanford University (screen shot).

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Thanks to the Sacrifices of Many, There's Talk of Censoring Us - Discovery Institute

Everything is NOT what it seems when it comes to Disney+.

Fans might notice some differences in some old episodes as they rewatch some of their favorite shows on the streaming giant, but one particular fan noticed some pretty unusual censoring during an episode of Wizards of Waverly Place.

While watching season 2 episode 10 of the series, Twitter user Danielle Owen (@lovelychubly) noticed that Theresa Russo, played by Maria Canals-Barrera, had her cleavage blurred in a scene.

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According to Inside the Magic, which first wrote about the censoring, "these scenes involving Canals-Barrera originally aired on Disney Channel without any form of censoring, so its unclear why Disney made the decision to start censoring the actors appearance now that the episodes are on Disneys streaming service."

Seventeen also checked out the episode on iTunes and the blurring was exactly the same as in the Disney+ version. It is possible that it was added in for all digital releases of the show after it aired.

This isn't the first time Disney+ has faces censoring accusations.

Production on the highly-anticipated Lizzie McGuire reboot paused after the some Disney executives disagreed with one of the main storylines, which featured a character cheating on another. Meanwhile, Love, Victor moved to Hulu as some of the topics were seen as not too family-friendly.

Recently, fans of Hamilton expressed concern over the show running on Disney+ as the beloved musical will start streaming on July 3.

This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io

This commenting section is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page. You may be able to find more information on their web site.

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Disney Fan Notices Censoring in "Wizards of Waverly Place" Episode Streaming on Disney+ - Seventeen.com

A few days ago, YouTube removed an interview with Professor Dolores Cahill from the Computing Forever channel after Business Insider complained that it was filled with COVID-19 conspiracies and reported it to YouTube.

After the video was removed, the channels host, Dave Cullen, posted a brief 3:38 second update where he discussed the censorship of this Cahill interview.

And now YouTube has taken down Cullens update video for violating YouTubes community guidelines.

In this update video, Cullen talked about the takedown of the Cahill interview, shared the vague takedown notice hed received from YouTube, and encouraged viewers to watch the Cahill interview on BitChute a YouTube alternative that supports free speech.

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He also shared his opinion that the coronavirus is no more dangerous than seasonal influenza and that societal changes which are being ushered in as a response to the coronavirus are making way for what looks like a China-style social credit dystopia.

Additionally, Cullen slammed the censorship of the Cahill interview, discussed the need for a broad spectrum of ideas represented in order to finally find the truth, and warned that such censorship will create a Streisand Effect.

He closed out the update video by encouraging viewers to watch, download, share, and reupload the Cahill interview wherever they can.

While YouTubes notice only cites general community guideline violations, the update video was presumably taken down because YouTube deemed Cullen sharing his opinion on the coronavirus as going against the World Health Organization (WHO) something thats banned under the platforms controversial coronavirus policies.

Although the video has been removed from YouTube, its still available on BitChute.

Not only is YouTubes decision to censor a video calling out its censorship layered in irony but it also highlights the platforms increasingly aggressive enforcement against what it deems to be coronavirus misinformation.

The majority of the video focused on YouTubes censorship of the Cahill interview but Cullen briefly sharing his opinion on the virus seemingly was enough to get it taken down.

The removal of Cullens videos is the latest in a wave of recent coronavirus video takedowns on YouTube with some recent examples including the deletion of a video from anti-lockdown epidemiology researcher Knut M. Wittkowskki which had racked up millions of views and the removal of a popular interview with Dr. Judy Mikovits on the Valuetainment channel.

However, as YouTube faces mounting criticism for its censorship of coronavirus content, some videos are being reinstated.

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YouTube censors video discussing the platforms censorship of Professor Dolores Cahill interview - Reclaim The Net

Following its recent arrival on the streaming service, fans have discovered that Netflix has censored the seconds long shot of the Oh L L lingerie magazine cover in Back to the Future II.

After a frantic chase to retrieve the Grays Sports Almanac from the younger Biff Tannen in an effort to restore the timeline to its original state, Marty McFly finally obtains the almanac after Principal Strickland confiscates the book from Biff and tosses it in the garbage.

However, Marty instead discovers that the confiscated book was actually a risqu lingerie magazine titled Oh LL which Biff attempted to disguise using the cover of the almanac. Dismayed, Marty discards the lingerie magazine and resumes the hunt for the history altering publication.

The magazine cover, featuring a woman wearing a modest-by-todays-standards night gown and high heeled sandals, appears for roughly 5 seconds of total screen time.

In the Netflix edit, while the contents of the magazine are still seen, these five seconds have been completely removed, resulting in a jarring and confusing cut transition straight to Martys frustrated panic.

These edits were documented by the titular host of the Salty Nerd podcast and Youtuber Justin Proper, who provided the original and edited scenes, respectively:

As of writing, Netflix has not commented publicly on the reason for this strange and unnecessary edit.

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Back to the FuturecensorshipNetflix

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Netflix Censors 'Oh L L' Magazine Cover in Back to the Future II - Bounding Into Comics