I've been working in Beijing for approaching a year, so here are my two cents. The foreign media sites which are blocked (in my experience) tend to be only the most prominent (and/or incriminating), ie: CNN, BBC, Amnesty International, Free Tibet, etc.. re: news (as with 9-11), anyone can locate the same information with minimum effort via different sites, provided they're interested and possess basic English reading skills (sizeable percentage in urban areas since learning our language is mandatory in high school) for a search engine.
It should also be noted that it's the local, average-income population who are unable to access these sites. Any 'diplomatic' or higher end housing development tends to have full access to the internet and television, since obviously it's tenants will be well off (ie: their salary is usd versus the yuan), and we can assume, quite comfortable with life in China.
Slashdot Mirror
I've been working in Beijing for approaching a year, so here are my two cents. The foreign media sites which are blocked (in my experience) tend to be only the most prominent (and/or incriminating), ie: CNN, BBC, Amnesty International, Free Tibet, etc.. re: news (as with 9-11), anyone can locate the same information with minimum effort via different sites, provided they're interested and possess basic English reading skills (sizeable percentage in urban areas since learning our language is mandatory in high school) for a search engine.
It should also be noted that it's the local, average-income population who are unable to access these sites. Any 'diplomatic' or higher end housing development tends to have full access to the internet and television, since obviously it's tenants will be well off (ie: their salary is usd versus the yuan), and we can assume, quite comfortable with life in China.