"...China's desire to improve its international image."

not shooting monks would probably help...but then, Burma got away with it (no substantially adverse consequences followed), so why wouldn't you?

love the PR, though. it's clumsy in a way that only a large company (Microsoft, ExxonMobil, etc.) or a government can fumble it.

Although China does have certain freedoms, like using a TV without a licence.

"The Chinese government never confirmed such a ban even existed"

So how will they explain the news that it has now been lifted..?

I wonder if the Dirty Digger will now allow the Beeb back on his Star satellite?

No trouble. Just get the department responsible to edit a few old newspapers to show that such a ban *was* imposed by some now-discredited hardliner, showing the lifting of said ban to be an act of munificence by the new, more cuddly types in power these days. Any news organisation that dares to suggest that the evidence is fabricated gets, er, banned.

Credit to George Orwell for that little trick.

Off now to post the words "Tibet", "state-sponsored murder" and "dictatorship" in as many places as possible on the BBC's fora (Latin pedants, fill yer boots).

My apologies to any Chinese who used to enjoy reading El Reg before I said that.

Youtube's not blocked in China.

It was down for a few days last week because of a crackdown on copyrighted videos across a lot of (mostly Chinese) video sites like tudou.com, but it's back now.

The People's version has been readily available in a format utilised by some of the most widely read people on the planet.

OK maybe it loses something in translation but hey, it IS the People's BBCN

Just incase anyone cares, news.bbc.co.uk was never blocked in Shanghai. But Shanghai is a rather western Chinese city.

Yes, data starts transferring from news.bbc.co.uk, but hangs on "waiting for newsimg.bbc.co.uk". So still requires Tor (albeit to a lesser extent than before if I bother to un-tor news.bbc.co.uk but leave in newsimg) to access the latest news from back home.

Not sure Steve Herrmann, the Editor of BBC News Online, quite got across the right message when he said:

"We will endeavour to continue working with the Chinese authorities to improve our access in other areas."

Perhaps all stories that the BBC thinks the PRC might view as dissenting, destabilising or undermining the regime will have a new HTML tag inserted...

<PRC_firewall_block_this_page>

...so that the great firewall of China can easily block it out.

Of course that's not what he meant, but it sure does sound like it. If this was a Murdoch owned enterprise we were talking about instead of the BBC then I would be tempted to suspect such things.

<cue yakov smirnoff impersonation>

In "democratic" Vietnam, monks have to kill themselves! (ba-dum-dum-ping!)

</impersonation>

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_crisis

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thich_Quang_Duc

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rage_Against_the_Machine_(album)

@peter: "Although China does have certain freedoms, like using a TV without a licence."

Not true - I believe you're *supposed* to pay something for the privilege of watching Harmonious Modern Entertainment With A Chinese Character, but I'm not sure how many people actually do...

@Tom Playford: "Just incase anyone cares, news.bbc.co.uk was never blocked in Shanghai"

Really? I could never access it via my work's network/hotel internet connection/mobile phone (China Mobile)... I think news.bbc.co.uk was definitely blocked. newsimg.bbc.co.uk worked though...

Now your British Propaganda Corporation can be received here in China. British propaganda very good quality, perhaps our people can learn how to improve ours to compete better, not just here at home, but on the global stage. Competition good, no? How about you now getting off our backs?

- Wu Ming

...the service being blocked the day after the closing ceremony of the Olympic Games when the Chinese government don't have to try and play nice any more.

How do u get TOR to work properly? far to slow to use...

"I believe you're *supposed* to pay something for the privilege of watching Harmonious Modern Entertainment With A Chinese Character"

Yep, they use some Chinese tekernoglical thingimywosit called a 'satelite dish', which translates into English as 'satelite dish'. Pretty much everyone has one, though I'm sure a whole bunch of them are bootleg receivers; I don't believe this has sent Mr. Murdoch to the dole queue quite yet though.

In 2002 during the World Cup I recall pretty much everywhere had western satellite TV - I relied heavily on BBC world for weather reports as the local CCTV weather reports were, predictably, in Mandarin. BBC news was uncensored as far as I could tell, even in out-of-the-way places like Maanshan, Anhui. Never had a problem with news.bbc.co.uk there either, though I was using my own laptop, and Maanshan is only 500km from Shanghai.

Firefox with foxyproxy addon. So only use Tor for sites I tell it to. Slow when using Tor, a little, but better slow than blocked.

Indeed, it is available. However, I was always confused because CNN has never been blocked (apart from once or twice for about half an hour) and others, such as Sky news has also always been readily available.

Hotels in China have special licenses to show certain channels. You are able to get sat too, as long as you have a special licence, or the cops don't see your dish, or you have a good contact. Guanxi rules in China. ;)

Ah right cool... thanks.

have it set up like u said. cheers.

i run a website, mpfspromotions.com

Small music website it is. Its blocked in United Emirates. Apparently our religious view is that of hatred.

Its my proudest achievement ever.