Microsoft Defends Censoring a Dissident's Blog in China

[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Kathy Chen kathy.chen@wsj.com and Geoffrey A. Fowler]
Microsoft's MSN Spaces, which lets users create their own Web sites or Web logs, has shut down a popular Chinese-language blog that has published content potentially offensive to Chinese authorities, amid China's ongoing efforts to control information on the Internet. The site had criticized the government's firing of top editors at a progressive Beijing newspaper late last month. Efforts to access the site from inside and outside China trigger a notice that "the space is temporarily unavailable." A statement from the company said: "MSN is committed to ensuring that products and services comply with global and local laws, norms, and industry practices in China. Most countries have laws and practices that require companies providing online services to make the Internet safe for local users. Occasionally, as in China, local laws and practices require consideration of unique elements." Microsoft declined to provide further details on why it took this action.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB113646995897338592.html?mod=todays_us_marketplace
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* Microsoft Shuts Blog's Site After Complaints by Beijing
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/06/technology/06blog.html?pagewanted=all

* Chinese bloggers take political satire offline
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=internetNews&storyID=2006-01-06T111121Z_01_ROB637424_RTRUKOC_0_US-ARTS-CHINA-BLOGGER.xml