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The Chinese government has banned George Orwell's dystopian satirical novella Animal Farm and the letter 'N' in a wide-ranging online censorship crackdown.
Experts believe the increased levels of suppression - which come just days after the Chinese Communist Party announced presidential term limits would be abolished - are a sign Xi Jinping hopes to become a dictator for life.
The China Digital Times, a California-based site covering China, reports a list of terms excised from Chinese websites by government censors includes the letter 'N', Orwell's novels Animal Farm and 1984, and the phrase 'Xi Zedong'.
The latter is a combination of President Xi and former chairman Mao Zedong's names.
[...] It was not immediately obvious why the ostensibly harmless letter 'N' had been banned, but some speculated it may either be being used or interpreted as a sign of dissent.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 05 2018, @10:12PM
We did not ban the word, we just culturally decided to ban it. Go ahead and say it anywhere anytime. The worst thing that will happen from the government is nothing unless you wander into hate speech territory. The worst that can happen to you from "society" is a quick ass kicking and possibly death, however you could then apply existing laws against assault.
You may not care for the distinction between private and government retribution but it is still an important one.