A micro blog with space for 140 Chinese characters had once been a source of endless amusement for Wang Ganghui, a senior majoring in biochemistry at Ji’nan University.
對于在暨南大學主修生物化學專業的大四學生王剛輝（音譯）來說，能夠容納140個漢字的微博曾是帶給他無限快樂的源泉。

Until last month, the 21-year-old had believed that he was part of a broader movment, one of enlightenment and open criticism. Recently, however, Wang’s micro blog is silent.
直到上個月，21歲的他還相信自己是這項廣泛的微博運動的參與者，以為自己是一個思想開明且可以公開發起聲討的一份子。然而最近他的微博卻沉默了。

The reason? It’s because of a woman known as “Zhao Meimei”. Earlier this month, Wang joined many other users to criticize the US-based student for her wealthy overseas life, because they thought her money came from corruption since her mother was a local official.
究竟是什么原因呢？全是因為一位被人們稱為“趙美美”的女士。本月月初，王剛輝同其他網友一起聲討這位留美學生在國外的奢華生活，因為他們認為她的錢都來自于貪污腐敗，只因她的媽媽是一名地方官員。

But later Wang found out that the woman student was actually being supported by her father, a hard-working businessman.
但后來王剛輝發現，事實上那名女學生是由她的父親、一位刻苦工作的商人供讀的。

“I felt guilty… Someone hid part of the truth to make a conflict. The worst thing is – I did not even have a chance to apologize to her,” he says.
“我有一種負罪感……有人掩蓋了部分事實，目的是為了制造事端。最糟糕的是，我甚至連向她道歉的機會都沒有，”他說。

Wang is not the only young Internet user to be confounded by an online world made up entirely of fragmented information.
同很多年輕網友一樣，王剛輝被全由支離破碎的信息組成的網絡世界給弄糊涂了。

This year saw a phenomenal boom in micro-blogging in both private and public life.
今年，無論是在私人還是公眾生活中，人們都清楚看到了微博的繁榮壯大。

According to statistics from the International Communication Office of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee last month, the number of micro bloggers in China now exceed 300 million.
根據中央外宣辦上個月公布的數據顯示，現在中國的微博用戶超過3億人。

For private users, a micro blog can provide real-time updates from anyone a user chooses to “follow”. These can range from family members to celebrities. Information can instantly be spread through “re-tweeting”.
對于私人用戶來說，微博可以提供來自于你所關注的任何人實時更新的消息，包括家庭成員和明星。這些信息可以通過被轉發而迅速傳播開來。

In the public sphere however, a micro blog can also become a link between users and the authorities.
而在公眾領域里，微博可以成為連接用戶同政府部門的紐帶。

According to an annual government affairs report on micro blogs, over 20,000 governmental agencies in China launched official accounts this year, increasing 200 percent from last year.
據微博上的一份政府年度工作報告顯示，今年中國有超過2萬個政府機構開通了自己的官方微博，比去年增長了兩倍。

However, with the increasing popularity of micro blogs comes a number of problems.
然而，伴隨著微博的人氣與日俱增，一系列問題也隨之而來。

Chen Changfeng, deputy director of the School of Journalism and Communication at Tsinghua University, highlighted two major types of misbehavior that can occur on micro blogs and upset young users.
清華大學新聞與傳播學院的副院長陳昌鳳強調了微博上的兩類主要不良品行，它們可能會擾亂年輕用戶。

“Some marketers engage in sensational promotion in an effort to generate hype for some person or product; others use the free channel to manufacture and spread fake news and rumors like a virus,” Chen says.
“一些從事鼓吹式宣傳的營銷人員會極力地為一些人或產品進行大肆宣傳；另一些人則會利用這個免費的渠道來捏造虛假新聞以及謠言，并使得它們像病毒一樣傳播開來。”陳昌鳳副院長表示。

He says that an average micro blogger receives and transmits info, but when faced with such a vast amount of information, lacks the ability to discern the difference between the real and the fake stories.
他表示，普通微博用戶往往會接收并傳播信息，但當面對如此大量的信息時，它們卻缺乏辨別真假消息的能力。

As a result, rumors on micro blogs are rampant, such as the salt crisis and the alleged death of novelist Jin Yong.
結果，微博上謠言猖獗，例如“鹽慌”和所謂的金庸死訊。

Having realized this, Internet users have come together to combat micro blog misconduct by forming voluntary groups such as the Rumor Clarification Association.
網友們已經意識到這一點，并聯合起來成立了包括“辟謠聯盟”在內的一些志愿者團體，來打擊微博上的不當行為，。

Zhu Xun, 27 is an editor of the Squirrel Club, an organization that appeals to common sense in its attempts to discredit online rumors.
27歲的朱迅（音譯）是“科學松鼠會”的一名編輯，該組織依據致力于借助常識粉碎網絡謠言。

“If you give a careful second thought, you’ll discover that many micro blog rumors just lack grounds,” says Zhu.
“如果你仔細想想，就會發現很多微博上的謠傳是毫無依據的。”朱迅說。

He recalled a recent micro blog rumor which claimed that two students at the Wuhan Textile University had been murdered and their kidneys removed.
他回想起近期的一條微博謠言，該微博稱稱武漢紡織大學的兩名學生被謀殺且腎臟被摘走。

“But a kidney for a transplant should be taken when the donor is alive, and even then, the chance of a match is only 0.001 percent,” he explained.
“但是用于器官移植的腎臟應該在捐獻者活著的時候被取下，但即便那樣，配型成功的幾率也只有0.001%，”他解釋道。

Such groups form only one part of a broader framework of cyber-supervision. The government and individual operators of micro-blogging sites have also stepped in to monitor posted content.
此類的團體只是較龐大的網絡監督構架中的一部分。政府和微博網站的運營者也已參與到內容監管中。

Last week, the State Internet Information Office revealed that 206 micro blog accounts had been shut down for dispersing pornographic information.
上周，國家互聯網信息辦公室稱，206個微博賬戶由于涉嫌散播淫穢內容，已被關閉。

Deputy Director, Qian Xiaoqian, said: “The government has to verify the facts and present the real story to lessen irrational fear, and penalize those who break relevant laws.”
國家互聯網信息辦公室副主任錢小芊說：“政府必須核查實情和擺出真相，以此來減少無端恐懼，同時要懲罰那些違反相關法規的人。”

The Sina Weibo micro-blogging site has created a separate account to refute rumors. According to Chen Jinguo, a Sina senior PR manager, they’ve both filtered the illegal content and employed a team to check published posts for inaccuracies.
新浪網高級公關經理陳金國（音譯）稱，新浪微博已開設獨立賬號來粉碎謠言。他們已經過濾違法內容，并有一支團隊專門檢查已發布帖子尋找不實信息。

“But it’s still the prime duty for every user to be aware of thinking and deciding whether to publish or re-tweet any info on their micro blog,” said Zhu.
“但對于每個微博用戶而言，留心思考并決定是否發布或轉載任何信息仍是首要責任。”朱迅說。