Is about.com censored by the government of China?
About.com abides by all draconian measures that apply to Internet companies operating in China (ie: reporting people who post content that makes the government unhappy, etc), but Roberts said the site sidesteps the issue by its very nature. About.com in China will focus on lifestyles issues that do not touch topics that make China’s government sensitive, such as politics and religion. Since About.com runs content explicitly written by their own employees and approves all comments before they go up, there is little risk of anonymous content that upsets the Internet police. By contrast, the US version of About.com features numerous guides writing about politics and religious issues. Why not start the site yourself? Since Roberts knows more about China’s Internet space than most, I asked why he didn’t just start an About.com-style site on his own, without seeking cooperation from the US-based company. Roberts said that while the look and feel of the China site may be different, About.com
