China’s New AI Wall of Censorship, A Model Western Governments May Try To Copy

Pre-censorship algorithms powered by artificial intelligence.

Will Henney

In the pulsating digital heart of modern China, a battle for words, images and ideas rages. Behind the screens of millions of smartphones and the cascading posts of social media platforms, a drama unfolds where even the smallest slip-up can lead to catastrophic consequences.

Consider the fate of a celebrity, a revered figure with adoring fans stretching from the skyscrapers of Shanghai to the terraced fields of Yunnan. One careless social media post, a misrepresented map of the South China Sea, an ill-timed photo with a discredited official, or a phrase hinting at a forbidden political topic, and it’s all over.

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