Why you can buy "1984" in China

It may surprise you to learn that in China, a country with far more active censors than the U.S., actually has not banned George Orwell’s Animal Farm and 1984.

For a time last winter, say Amy Hawkins and Jeffrey Wasserstrom, references to either book on social media were banned, yes.

But the books themselves can be easily obtained.

Scratching your head? Hawkins and Wasserstrom explain why that is and describe the Chinese Communist Party’s method for what it bans and what it merely blocks references to, in a piece in the Atlantic.

(Hat tip to The Passive Voice for sharing the post.)