Today
- Opinion
- Opinion
The government’s misinformation bill is a betrayal of democracy
This bill incentivises censorship. It makes the government the ultimate arbiter of truth. It has no place in our nation.
- David Coleman
August
Why Telegram became the go-to app for troublemakers
A light-touch approach to content moderation means the software is now a prime target for governments trying to stop criminal activities and misinformation.
- Eleanor Thornber and Jeff Stone
June
Calls to ban WeChat grow after Canberra clashes
Mandarin-language social media platform WeChat has banned coverage of clashes that broke out between Chinese Australians during Premier Li Qiang’s visit.
- Gus McCubbing
March
India bans ABC broadcasts on Sikh separatist killing
The broadcasts related to the fallout from the alleged murder of a man whose slaying was linked to the Indian government by Canada’s prime minister.
- Nick Bonyhady
January
- Opinion
- Diversity
The real danger posed by diversity, equity and inclusion
In the name of these progressive concepts, all too many institutions have violated their constitutional commitments to free speech, due process and equal protection of the law.
- David French
- Opinion
- Culture wars
Was 2023 the year of peak woke?
As a middle-aged, white-ish man, I may not be best placed to pronounce the decline of woke. Still, I can see its problems mounting.
- Joshua Chaffin
November 2023
Political correctness is too much for the ‘exhausted majority’
You should concentrate on how you say things rather than walking on eggshells for fear of offending someone by what you say.
- Peter Quarry
September 2023
Elon Musk reveals Twitter takeover driven by ‘woke mind virus’
Elon Musk was driven to buy Twitter after fearing his transgender daughter had been infected by an “anti-right-wing” mindset common on the platform.
- Susie Coen and David Millward
December 2022
‘Breach of the big silence’: China’s censorship stretched to the limit
Authorities are suddenly pushing up against the limit of their surveillance capabilities as protesters get increasingly wily about countermeasures.
- Paul Mozur, Muyi Xiao and John Liu
March 2022
Brazil’s top court blocks messaging app in ‘fake news’ crackdown
The push to shut Telegram in Brazil is part of efforts to combat misinformation and falsehoods about the country’s electoral system, but the ban is already being challenged by the right-wing government.
- Andrew Rosati
- Analysis
- Russia-Ukraine war
Through the looking glass: how Russians see the war
Putin’s crackdown on dissent gives him space to present his mind-bending narrative of the war in Ukraine. Willingly or fearfully, many Russians accept it.
- Hans van Leeuwen
Russia cracks down on dissenting media, blocks Facebook
Russia has intensified a crackdown on media outlets and individuals, blocking Facebook and Twitter and criminalising the intentional spreading of what Moscow deems to be “fake” reports.
- James Ellingworth
January 2022
Hong Kong’s Citizen News says closure triggered by Stand News collapse
Citizen News said it would cease operations from Tuesday, describing the media environment in the Chinese-ruled city as ‘deteriorating’.
- Jessie Pang and Edmond Ng
September 2021
Russo says tech crackdown could be good for China
One of Warren Buffett’s strongest supporters says China’s pressure on tech giants such as Alibaba is a much-needed “disinfectant” for the unruly sector.
- Updated
- Carrie LaFrenz
July 2021
China would learn a great deal from Australia’s education system
The land of Little Red Books would profit from talking about indoctrination with the best.
- Rowan Dean
March 2021
China punishes LinkedIn for lax censorship
LinkedIn has been allowed to operate in China, because Microsoft agrees to censor posts made by Chinese users. Now, it’s in hot water for not censoring enough.
- Paul Mozur, Raymond Zhong and Steve Lohr
Russia squeezes Twitter amid crackdown, internet traffic disrupted
Authorities will make Twitter run more slowly on all mobile devices and on half of desktop computers and access could be blocked altogether if Twitter doesn’t remove banned content.
- Jake Rudnitsky
February 2021
Senators revive bill to combat Chinese censorship of US companies
US officials have complained that the Chinese government has increasingly sought to suppress opposition to its ruling Communist Party by coercing US companies to take pro-Beijing stances.
- Michael Martina
PM condemns Facebook ‘bullying’
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has rallied the support of foreign leaders to push back against Facebook, after the social media giant stunned the world by blacking out news for millions of Australians.
- John Kehoe and Miranda Ward
Who makes the rules? Facebook blocking news an ‘inflexion point’
Technology industry experts say Facebook’s mass blocking session of Australian news media and other pages shows society is at a turning point in terms of who has the power to call the shots.
- Natasha Gillezeau