China Removes Domestic News about School Stabbings

Last May, a man murdered nine people including seven children at a nusery school in China’s Shaanxi Province before committing suicide, said the English version of xinhuanet.com. 

The government claims that to prevent future attacks they are increasing security at schools across the mainland.

How does this story relate to Communication Policy?

The story has now been censored. That’s correct, this story is deemed too threatening to the nation as a whole to be shown on domestic Chinese news.

Cutting out the word protest I understand in terms of an Authoritarian state, but not letting people in the community access information that might serve to protect or inform them in the future is a little shocking even for China.  This isn’t a story about the government cracking down on people, this is a story about an insane man murdering innocent people.   Many of the things filtered out of Chinese media is based on profanity, anti-Chinese messages, and, for me it seems, if it makes the government look bad. I honestly can only see the tangential connection in that it makes it look like schools in China are vulnerable, which schools everywhere are. It isn't a Chinese phenomenon any more than it is an American one.

Contributor Lauren Frayer from AOL News had this opinion on the matter:

“The government may be trying to prevent copycat attacks by tamping down publicity about the string of bizarre assaults. The crimes have riveted China and put fear in the hearts of parents nationwide. Experts say such attacks often happen in clusters, perpetrated by deranged assailants mesmerized by publicity of previous crimes.

But by censoring news of the attacks, China could also be trying to eliminate bad publicity for itself, especially while Shanghai is hosting the World Expo, a six-month fair showcasing China's culture and openness to some 80 million anticipated visitors.

China has dispatched thousands of police and security guards and installed fences and cameras at elementary schools nationwide. But attacks like Wednesday's have continued. By censoring reports, China could be hoping to dodge public fury over its inability to halt the attacks."