Beijing (CNS) – Weibo, the Chinese micro blog platform, is regarded as the impetus behind changes in the relationship between government officials and the public. Many current affairs were spread on Weibo, everything from "taking photos to save beggar children" to "discussing school bus safety". Weibo has become the brand new way to form and inform opinions, or to argue with mavericks - even for governmental officials.
The number of Chinese Weibo users has reached 300 million, 61 percent of China's overall netizen population. To a large extent, Weibo acts as a channel for the Chinese to engage in open public expression, though only 140 words are allowed in any single post.
About 20,000 Weibo users are governmental organs or officials, a number verified at the end of November 2011 and reported in the 2011 Report of Sina Weibo for Government Affairs.
Jiang Yukai, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Governance, holds the view that Weibo has changed the dialogue between government and citizenry, making it possible to communicate more directly.
Weibo will require users to enroll using their real names in order to root out any rumor-mongers who would abuse the service.
