Same, Same...but different.
I always knew that there was some sort of censorship in China in regards to social media.
Thereâs pretty much censorship of everything, from a voice, to how many kids you can have.
 All jokes aside, what I did NOT know, was that China, even though they have shunned our dailies of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, China leads the amount of time spent on social media against Japan and the United States (Chiu, 2012).
 What is worthy noting, are the possible reasons why they lead in social media use.
 1.  The one-child policy
Imagine living in a world/ country where you donât have brothers and sisters? No one to fight with, no one to talk to, or get up to mischief with, and no one to confide in (other than your parents).
This may be a key factor as to why (possibly every single child) seeks refuge to online communities to socialise to escape the loneliness. Or even to venture out and look for information or what else is out there.
 2.  One letter = one character in the English language. One character = one word in the Chinese language.
That would mean that for every 140 characters we read which takes us â 5 seconds? Takes longer for a Chinese person to read, because theyâre reading a paragraph in comparison! (Crampton, 2011).
And this is interesting, because whilst we, in Australia read a tweet, have joke, laugh about it and move on, Chinese people are actually immersed in what theyâre reading because itâs a complete sentence or paragraph at the very least. Which logically, would take more time to read, which then adds reason as to why they lead in the amount of time spent on social media. Frankly, thereâs just more to read.
 3.  Letâs face it. China is a communist country. Where there is suppression â of any sort (even in the western world), there will be activism. We speak of the term, digital dualism where the merging of both offline and online world exists. It certainly does, because whatâs real in China, is the fact that their opinions are refrained. So, as humans, they seek a voice. As communication evolves, so too do the basic human needs. In an interview with Kevin Lee at the DLD conference (2013), Lee believes that people find freedom in a virtual identity, giving them choice â which is an oppressed right in China. And the social media platform has⊠suddenly given them a space to have a voice.
Culturally, social media has helped the Chinese find some sort of voice, living in a Communist society. I agree with Chiu, Lin and Silverman's (2013, p 1) claim that "Social media is exploding worldwideâ. However, in regards to China leading the way, I believe you need to look at the context, and what it means to lead the way.
 Yes their numbers are far greater in the USE of social media. But if you were living in a country where communication is limited, you would take every opportunity to express your own identity.
In terms of LEADING the way in technology etc⊠Kitty Lun in the interview (DLDConference 2013) says it clearly: âthey take the best parts and create it to make their ownâ.
That is NOT leading the way, but more shifting communication tools and social media platforms to suit their needs.
Chiu, C, Lin, D & Silverman, A 2012, China's social-media boom, McKinsey & Company, viewed 24 September 2014, <http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/marketing_sales/chinas_social-media_boom>.
Crampton, T 2011, 'Social media in China: The same, but differen't, China Business Review, Vol. 38, no. 1, pp 28-31, viewed 24 September 2014, <http://www.thomascrampton.com/china/social-media-china-business-review/>.
DLDconference 2013, DLD13 - How Social Media is changing China and Asia, 7 February, viewed 24 September 2014, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rG3z2ucaR6A>.
The Great Firewall of China 2013, Open Democracy viewed 24 September 2014, <https://www.opendemocracy.net/china-correspondent/great-firewall-of-china>.
