A little late, but still timely.
When internet users were further queried about their trust in different kinds of online content, they overwhelmingly said that they trusted information on government websites more than any other kind of online information. Three-quarters of respondents deemed reliable most or all the information on government websites, compared with 46% for pages from established media, 28% for results from search engines, 11% for content on bulletin boards and in advertisements, 4% for information from individuals' web pages, and 3% for postings in chat rooms. In addition, an overwhelming 93% of internet users said they considered much of internet content to be unsuitable for children.
In addition, an overwhelming 93% of internet users said they considered much of internet content to be unsuitable for children.
but...
According to CNNIC estimates, there were 137 million Chinese internet users at the end of 2006, 165 million by mid-2007, and a whopping 210 million by the beginning of 2008. <...> Findings in the 2007 survey show that although only 26% of respondents consider online content to be reliable, about 95% of Chinese believe they can learn new things by going online. <...> CNNIC [China Internet Network Information Center] reported that one quarter of Chinese internet users write blogs, and many more take part in online discussions. Although the West may be most familiar with reports about political blogs in China, most Chinese bloggers -- like most American bloggers -- are actually keeping diaries of personal thoughts or daily lives and writing about hobbies and pets, about entertainers and pop culture. The internet represents an original chance for ordinary people to be heard or to connect with others around the country as never before.
Findings in the 2007 survey show that although only 26% of respondents consider online content to be reliable, about 95% of Chinese believe they can learn new things by going online. <...>
CNNIC [China Internet Network Information Center] reported that one quarter of Chinese internet users write blogs, and many more take part in online discussions. Although the West may be most familiar with reports about political blogs in China, most Chinese bloggers -- like most American bloggers -- are actually keeping diaries of personal thoughts or daily lives and writing about hobbies and pets, about entertainers and pop culture. The internet represents an original chance for ordinary people to be heard or to connect with others around the country as never before.
Most Chinese Say They Approve of Government Internet Control
Most Chinese - from a survey which deliberately excludes individuals whose opinions the Chinese government doesn't like - say they approve of government Internet control.
Fun.
Not sure I follow. I might have missed something in the report, but I didn't see anything to suggest that people were excluded from the survey based on their opinions:
Guo Liang, deputy director of the Research Center for Social Development, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who directed the study and authored the report, describes the interview process as follows: "The survey started with: `Hello, I am conducting a survey sponsored by the Research Center for Social Development of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. This is a confidential random survey and your response will remain anonymous.' The respondents should know they were being questioned by pollsters working for an independent survey company." He also notes that while CASS is not a government agency, it is funded by the government although this particular study was funded by the Markle Foundation, located in New York, and that more than 90% of CASS reports are not "official reports."
As required of all public-opinion polling in China, either the survey or the surveyors must be approved by the government, and some topics that Westerners might have liked to see addressed directly, such as censorship, were not.
It's worryingly vague on the precise details of who was asked and who wasn't. 'Random' here doesn't exclude 'picked from pre-approved lists.'
The fact that this survey is claiming that the Chinese support censorship when it hasn't 'addressed directly' the topic doesn't fill me with confidence about its accuracy.
Yes, I saw that. The text I quoted was the footnote to the first sentence in that paragraph. I thought it pretty clearly indicated that survey respondents were perfect strangers, i.e. not pre-selected.
I think you are speculating too much. You do see people doing surveys on the streets here, at least in Shanghai and Hangzhou. I could totally see this survey being done in that way. How would you pre-approve pedestrians? Or do you think the Chinese authorities went through the trouble of generating a list of phone numbers whose owners would answer in a politically acceptable manner?
Also, the statement that "most Chinese say they approve of internet control and management" is a global summary of the survey responses. No question was phrased in exactly that way. Based on what the actual questions were, I think the statement is rather exaggerated and even misleading.
After all, how do Internet users in Western countries feel about Internet control on the following?
87% of internet users would control or manage pornography; 86% violent content; 83% spam or junk mail; 66% advertisements; 64% slander against individuals.
You're assuming it was a face to face survey. The methodology in the full paper says that in fact it was a phone survey.
It does say they were randomly selected. But the sample size of 2000 seems on the small side if you're trying to represent five cities across all age groups and use patterns. Especially when around a third of the sample weren't Internet users.
And there were no questions about censorship, only about 'controlling' specific kinds of traffic.
I can accept this wasn't a pre-approved list, although obviously pre-approved lists do exist, which limits the usefulness of surveys which use them.
I'm not so convinced that the study proves anything much, because if you want make a claim about censorship, it doesn't seem a stretch to require a survey to ask explicit questions about censorship.
The fact that that wasn't possible here is - of course - a kind of censorship itself.
