Xiao Qiang

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Xiao Qiang

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Xiao (蕭).

Xiao Qiang (simplified Chinese: 萧强; traditional Chinese: 蕭強; pinyin: Xiāo Qiáng) is the Director of China Internet Project and an adjunct professor at the Graduate School of Journalism, University of California, Berkeley. He is the Founder and Publisher of China Digital Times, an independent China news portal.

A theoretical physicist by training, Xiao Qiang studied at the University of Science and Technology of China and entered the PhD program (1986-1989) in astrophysics at the University of Notre Dame. He became a full time human rights activist after the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Xiao was the Executive Director of the New York-based NGO Human Rights in China from 1991 to 2002 and vice-chairman of the steering committee of the World Movement for Democracy. He has spoken at each meeting of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in Geneva from 1993 to 2001, and has testified many times before the American Congress. He has lectured on the promotion of freedom, human rights and democracy in China in over 40 countries in Asia, Europe, North America, Latin America and Africa. Xiao has published numerous articles in the International Herald Tribune, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, Los Angeles Times, South China Morning Post and other major publications. He is also a weekly commentator for Radio Free Asia.

Xiao is a recipient of the MacArthur Fellowship in 2001, and is profiled in the book Soul Purpose: 40 People Who Are Changing the World for the Better, (Melcher Media, 2003). He was also a visiting fellow of the Santa Fe Institute in 2002.

Xiao is currently teaching classes on Participatory Media/Collective Action and Covering China at both the School of Information and the Graduate School of Journalism, University of California, Berkeley. He is also researching and writing about state censorship and control of the Internet, and the impact of information and communication technologies on China's media, politics and international relations. In Fall 2003, Xiao launched the China Digital Times news portal to explore how emerging Web 2.0 technologies and practices can advance the world's understanding of China. He is also the author of bilingual personal blog Rock-n-Go (岩棋志) and a public speaker on China's information revolution and its future.