How many of you have heard of Ai WeiWei?

Okay well for those of you who don't know...

Picture of WeiWei giving the middle finger to tianemen square

But his comments are just as provocative as his art. Weiwei is a social media activist, speaking out against local corruption and gov't abuses.

Through the internet he has created the biggest following in his life - and is creating real change.

China's first global art star

- Muesums all over the world with bold sculpture, photography, installation


But he is also Chinas most outspoken critic

Thousands schoolchildren died, particularly devastating b/c one child policy.

Ai Weiwei, who had been blogging daily on Sino Weibo (Chinese Twitter copycat) could not post anything for a week.

Wanted to catalog the names of the dead schoolchildren in an artwork to commemorate the tragedy. And he was told..

Gathered....

Artworks he made to commemorate:

remembering: 9000 backpacks

what a mother said she wanted people to remember about her daughter

After blog was shutdown, moved outside the firewall to twitter.

He daily posts the names of the dead children on their bdays.


Continues to speak out.

But this kind of artistic dissent, public criticism, & collective action does not come without consequences.

Viral Twitpic the day he was beaten by police in Chengdu.

Filed multiple complaints for a hearing - no action

Undergo emergency treatment for a cerebral hemmorrhage.

Said it was for "tax evasion" and accused of spreading porn.

imposed a major fine. & barred from leaving china.

Constantly under surveillance -- video cameras, people following him constantly.

"They all ask: Why? Why is it that this man's name [Ai WeiWei] can never be typed on a Chinese computer or the whole sentence will desappear?"

Censorship - growing issue with social media because harder to monitor.

Keywords, length of post, where on the site they appeared, whether started a conversation or contributed.

Volunteers that report. Get paid 50 cent post positive comments that gov. wants. Difficult to determine true thoughts from customers

"health" "in the public interest" damage "china's culture or traditions. nothing challenges communist party

Google, NY times, WSJ, Wash post, yahoo hacked in past.

Info taken, email, source codes -- china denies

vpn helps keep this info private - recently more issues with vpns. speed and at times disabled completely

- help protect IP, handle regulations, manage promotion

- china does not like groups forming - even if that be for promotional reasons. Posts bringing up gathering, joining a group, signing something, will attract more surveillance and censorship

- Chinese mkt huge sm potential for cos marketing in China. Sm greater influence on purchase decisions than elsewhere (don't trust media). But message is restriced -- and quick witty campaigns like oreo/iphone backlash could be pushed back

- For businesses who want to use social networks in China, I think it is a good time now so long as you just focus on business. If your activity becomes a threat for the government, you have to cooperate or stop working in China

Ai, Weiwei, and Larry Warsh. Weiwei-isms. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2013. Print.

Ai WeiWei: Never Sorry. Dir. Alison Klayman. 2012. Netflix.

Allen, Danielle. "Ai Weiwei: Never Retreat. Retweet." The Nation 17 Sept. 2012: 23-26. Print.

Brett, Jeanne. A New Approach to China: Google and Censorship in the Chinese Market. N.p.: Kellog School of Management, n.d. Print.

Fong, Henry. "5 Things You Need To Know About Chinese Social Media." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 25 Oct. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Gallo, Frank. "The Reality of Chinese Microblogging." HBR Blog Network. Harvard Business Review, 1 Oct. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Julie. "Social Media and Censorship in China." Synthesio. N.p., 21 Mar. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Marche, Stephen. "A Cultural Revolution: The AGO's Ai Weiwei Exhibition Proves Why the Chinese Artist Is Such a Threat." Toronto Life. Toronto Life, 14 Aug. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

McDonald, Mark. "Adding More Bricks to the Great Firewall of China." IHT Rendezvous. New York Times, 23 Dec. 2012. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Prestowitz, Clyde. "In China, Business Is War." HBR Blog Network. Harvard Business Review, 4 Feb. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Simonite, Tom. "Social Media Censorship Offers Clues to China's Plans." MIT Technology Review. MIT, 29 Apr. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.

Simonite, Tome. "Academics Launch Fake Social Network to Get an Inside Look at Chinese
Censorship." MIT Technology Review. MIT, 12 Sept. 2013. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.