How the Great Firewall of China manipulates information

New Delhi, Dec 26: The Great Firewall of China is a component that is used by the Chinese Communist Party to manipulate the information flow. It has been found that a lot of China's information is manipulated and this has led to a massive flow of fake news and censorship.

China has over the years built a fake news factory to fill in the information void. "When citizens have accurate information about their country, it's only then that they can adopt a rational, open-minded worldview," Wei Xing, the former editor-in-chief of Sixth Tone said in an article.

China has for long now viewed open access to information as a major threat to the Communist Party.

The primary agenda is to push the propaganda of the government and had there been free access to information, this would not have been possible. China watchers tell OneIndia that the motive of the Communist Party is to flood the internet with so much fake news and propaganda that the people are unable to tell the difference between what is right and what is wrong.

China has over 900 million internet users and each one of them is subject to the Great Firewall of China. The Chinese Communist Party has managed to portray itself as pro-people due to the fake news and its propaganda. Issues like the food and electricity crisis are conveniently blocked and a rosy picture is painted to the people.

Take for instance the Galwan clashes with India, in which 20 Indian soldiers were martyred after fighting bravely. There are reports to suggest that at least 30 Chinese soldiers were killed or have gone missing. However this information is never out in the open as the Chinese never declare the casualties on their side.

The Great Firewall of China is the combination of legislative actions and technologies enforced by the People's Republic of China to regulate the Internet domestically. Its role in internet censorship in China is to block access to selected foreign websites and to slow down cross-border internet traffic, says Wikipedia.

The effect includes: limiting access to foreign information sources, blocking foreign internet tools and mobile apps, and requiring foreign companies to adapt to domestic regulations. Besides censorship, the GFW has also influenced the development of China's internal internet economy by nurturing domestic companies and reducing the effectiveness of products from foreign internet companies, Wikipedia also says.