Jing Zhao (, born 1975), also known by his pen name Michael Anti, is a

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

journalist and political blogger, recognized for his posts about

freedom of the press in China Freedom of the press in China refers to the journalism standards and its freedom and censorship exercised by the government of China. The Constitution of the People's Republic of China guarantees "freedom of speech ndof the press" which the gover ...

. He has been described in mid-2000s as "at one time perhaps the most famous political blogger on China's Internet.".

Biography

Born in a Hui Muslim family in

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

, Anti graduated from

Nanjing Normal University Nanjing Normal University (NNU or NJNU; ) is a public research university in Nanjing, China. Founded in 1902 as Sanjiang Normal School, it is one of the oldest and most prestigious higher normal schools in China, and has become a research-intensi ...

in 1995 where he majored in Industrial Electrical Automation. Beginning in 1998, he started posting essays on the Internet, and became a journalist shortly afterward. He lost his job at a Chinese newspaper in 2003 when the entire paper was shut down in retaliation of its support for political reform. In December 2004, under the pen name Michael Anti, he started a blog that was blocked in China in August 2005. This prompted him to switch to MSN Spaces, a Microsoft-hosted blog. Michael Anti became notable when

Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...

deleted his

blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...

in late 2005 at the request of the Chinese government. His blog was removed after he posted about the firing of three editors at

The Beijing News ''The Beijing News'' is a Chinese Communist Party-owned newspaper from Beijing. The Chinese name of the newspaper is ''Xīn Jīng Bào'' (), meaning "New Beijing News", which is a reference to the defunct '' Peking Gazette'' (). The Chinese pub ...

and called upon its subscribers to cancel their subscriptions. His case made headlines around the world and contributed to ongoing debates about the role of Western companies in China's censorship system. Michael Anti himself, while angry at the deletion of his blog, argued that the Chinese are better off with

Windows Live Spaces Windows Live Spaces was Microsoft's blogging platform and social network service. The site was originally released in early 2004 as MSN Spaces to compete with other social networking services, and re-launched in 2006 as a part of a shifting of comm ...

than without it. He has been a commentator for the '' Huaxia Times'', correspondent of the '' 21st Century World Herald'', war reporter in Baghdad in 2003, researcher at ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' Beijing Bureau and at ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Beijing bureau, columnist for the ''

Southern Metropolis Daily Southern Metropolis Daily (SMD) is a for-profit tabloid newspaper located in Guangzhou city, China,Wang, Xiaotong. 2012. "The Comparison Between Newspapers In Hong Kong And Mainland And Its Enlightenment – A Case Study On Apple Daily And South ...

'', and publisher of the '' Far and Wide Journal''. He worked as project director in Cheung Kong School of Journalism and Communication of

Shantou University Shantou University (; abbreviated STU), a key comprehensive university under the provincial Project 211 program in Guangdong, was founded in 1981 with the approval of the State Council. It is the only public university that receives funding fro ...

from September 2008 to March 2009.

Awards

He is a recipient of a Wolfson press fellowship at

Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

and

Nieman Fellowship The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University awards multiple types of fellowships. Nieman Fellowships for journalists A Nieman Fellowship is an award given to journalists by the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard University ...

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

. Michael Anti was awarded the “M100 Sanssouci Media Award 2011” in Potsdam, Germany on 8 September 2011.

References

External links

Michael Anti on the China Digital Times

Interview on Cambridge Student (2008)

Interview with Michael Anti (Zhao Jing) begins at the last paragraph of page five (2006)
Microsoft removes Michael Anti's blog
- IFEX * ** (TEDGlobal 2012) {{DEFAULTSORT:Anti, Michael Chinese bloggers Hui people 1975 births Living people Nieman Fellows People's Republic of China journalists Writers from Nanjing