A recent internal test by a federally-funded broadcaster shows that the U.S. government has the power to bypass foreign Internet censors by feeding news over a special e-mail system. How that capability might affect events in Egypt, where leaders have cut off Internet services despite appeals by the Obama administration to restore them, remains unclear.Between March and June 2010, the Broadcasting Board of Governors successfully used the tool in China to transmit news feeds from broadcasters Voice of America, CKXX and China Weekly, according to a report the nonprofit website GovernmentAttic.org obtained this month through a Freedom of Information Act request. The experiment offers a glimpse into the secret measures the State Department and U.S. broadcasters have taken — and may currently be taking — to enable the free flow of information when oppressive regimes cut off Internet access.
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20110131_3828.phpAlso see:Regime throws information blackout over Egypt
Egypt has silenced Arabic news channel Al Jazeera and shut down internet and mobile phone communications across the country, with experts saying the censorship is probably part of a government plan enacted in the wake of Iran’s deadly green revolution.Tens of thousands of Egyptians have taken to the streets in Cairo and other cities, demanding the resignation of president Hosni Mubarak.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/01/31/3126016.htm
Test affirms United States’ ability to circumvent Internet censors
A recent internal test by a federally-funded broadcaster shows that the U.S. government has the power to bypass foreign Internet censors by feeding news over a special e-mail system. How that capability might affect events in Egypt, where leaders have cut off Internet services despite appeals by the Obama administration to restore them, remains unclear.