Reddit Users Fear Censorship After Tencent Investment

Reddit Censorship Fears

One of the biggest criticisms of the internet today is the manner in which such a significant amount of content is either not allowed or is blocked. I should make the distinction that by this, I am not referring to illegal content, but the ability to say something (no matter how stupid or offensive) is something that has come under significant attack.

Facebook and Twitter both represent this new level of morality of ‘you can’t say that because you might upset someone’. It has therefore largely fallen to Reddit to provide what many consider to be one of the last social media forums which truly allows for a free exchange of ideas and thoughts online.

With Chinese tech giant Tencent reportedly making a pretty substantial investment in the company, however, many users have started expressing concerns as to what they feel might be future censorship. They have, at least, responded to these concerns with a mildly amusing method. Namely, the spreading around of images of Winnie the Pooh.

What’s The Matter With Winnie The Pooh?

You might, at this point, be wondering how the Disney character could possibly be any form of protest. Well, if you have been paying attention to some of the more bizarre censorship issues in China, you’d know that the character is currently banned. Why? Well, because more than a few people have used him as a direct comparison to their current Premier Xi Jimping.

As such, in a report via the BBC, users have started using the image for multiple purposes. It criticises Reddit for allowing the investment, it takes a knock at Tencent (possibly makes things a little awkward for them in China), it highlights the ridiculous nature of censorship in the country, and above all, provides a good level of mischief-making trolling I thoroughly approve of!

It is, of course, doubtful that the investment will result in any censorship on the platform. If it does, however, the users are clearly ready to fight back. Personally, I wouldn’t want to pick a fight with Reddit’s community!

What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!