2007 Government Surveillance Map

[Undertoad]

It's the gray countries that give them away, isn't it. It's not hard to find information on them.

Maybe the Committee to Protect Journalists top-10 list of the world's worst censors shines some light on the situation. ALL OF THE COUNTRIES THEY LIST ARE GRAY on the NS map. It strikes me as obvious that part of the problem is listening in, but the bigger problem is what the consequences are. And if the state controls the media they are surely listening in.

1 North Korea

All domestic radio, television, and newspapers are controlled by the government. Radio and television receivers are locked to government-specified frequencies. Content is supplied almost entirely by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). It serves up a daily diet of fawning coverage of “Dear Leader” Kim Jong Il and his official engagements. The country’s grinding poverty or famines are never mentioned. Only small numbers of foreign journalists are allowed limited access each year, and they must be accompanied by "minders" wherever they go.

2 Burma

Burma’s few privately owned publications must submit content to the Press Scrutiny Board for approval before publishing; censorship delays mean that none publishes on a daily basis. In 2005, the junta took control of Bagan Cybertech, Burma’s main Internet service and satellite-feed provider. Citizens have been arrested for listening to the BBC or Radio Free Asia in public.

3 Turkmenistan

The state owns all domestic media and Niyazov’s administration controls them by appointing editors and censoring content. Niyazov personally approves the front-page content of the major dailies, which always include a prominent picture of him. In 2005, the state closed all libraries except for one that houses the president’s books, and banned the importation of foreign publications.

4 Equatorial Guinea
5 Libya
6 Etritea
7 Cuba
8 Uzbekistan
9 Syria
10 Belarus

[L.J]

Wait. So is it the gray countries, or not?

COCK!