Blogging China

China is the biggest story of the 21st century. The success or failure of its on-going economic, social and political transition will have a tremendous impact on the world, from stock-exchange markets to food security, from war and peace to climate change. This project-based research seminar is centered around an interactive news website: China Digital Times (CDT). Students will get the opportunity to do hands-on work on CDT, which taps into the vast resources of online news, analysis, and multimedia content about China from a wide spectrum of perspectives and sources.

The required tasks include practical solutions to address the issue of censorship in China, particularly in helping CDT to expand its readers within China. The class will also conduct reading/discussion sessions on China's state censorship, online activism and information politics in general.

In addition to learning about news aggregation about China, students will also explore innovative use of technology and social media approach to overcome the Great Firewall. This research seminar class is not limited to the graduate students in the School of Information or the Journalism School; students from other departments on campus, including undergraduates are welcome.

Note: This course is cross-listed with Journalism 298.