In response to widespread outrage on Weibo over allegations that companies were pumping industrial waste deep underground to avoid pollution regulations, environmental protection officials in Weifang City, Shandong Province announced a whopping 100,000 yuan (approximately US$16,000) reward to the first citizen to produce verifiable evidence of the “unscrupulous” practice. Not long after the prize was made public, Deng Fei, director of department of reporting of the Hong Kong based Phoneix Weekly posted a weibo claiming that a moratorium on coverage of the pollution scandal had already been imposed by local newspaper Qilu Evening News. Deng also expressed concern that local authorities would lobby Beijing to prohibit reporting on the topic nationally.
@DengFei: #ALetterFromTheFrontLines# ‘Brother Fei, we of the Qilu Evening News have already been banned. Tomorrow, five field reporters will be withdrawn. I’m afraid the two reports written today will not make it into the paper.’ Brothers, keep up the fight! Commentary: Isn’t the Weifang Environmental Protection Bureau offering a 100,000 yuan reward, encouraging netizens to report underground pollution? Now, Shandong has moved to seal off local media. Will they next travel to Beijing to lobby for a national ban, withdraw all reporters from around the whole country, and seal off national media?
@邓飞：#一封来自采访前线的来信#飞哥，我们齐鲁晚报已下禁令,明天五路记者将被撤回,今天采写的2版稿件恐难见报。弟兄们，请加油!评：潍坊环保局不 是悬奖金十万，鼓励网友举报地下水污染线索吗?山东现封口本地媒体，他们会进京讨要禁令，撤回全国记者，封口全国媒体吗?
The allegations of government hypocrisy struck a chord with legions of Weibo users, who swooped into action, furiously reposting and commenting on Deng’s post:
@HuangbuYitou: Fight on, Weifang! They certainly have the ability to shut the mouths of all the reporters in the country.
黄埔一投：潍坊加油！封全国记者的嘴一定能做到
@RecorderChenBaocheng: Expose every current Shandong propaganda official, sub-provincial-level and above!
记录者陈宝成:暴光山东籍宣传口副省级以上现任官员！
@JunoChen-SZ: Investigating pollution isn’t what they’re good at. Sealing things off, on the other hand, is.
JunoChen-SZ：查排污不是他们的特长，封口才是
@PrettyAngel003: They’re willing to spend hush money, but they’re not willing to spend money on fixing the problem. Isn’t this their home, their country, too?!
美丽天使003：他们宁愿拿钱去封口也不愿拿钱去治理，难道这个家园不是他们的家园，这个国不是他们的国?!
@VisualPawnshop: I won’t say a word. Just silently reposting. I hope popular attention can turn into power.
视觉当铺：什么都不想说了，默转，希望围观能成为力量。
@ChinaJarBrother: The National People’s Congress and CPPCC are about to open their annual meetings–what a wonderful excuse to control public opinion in the name of maintaining stability.
中国坛子哥：全国2会即将召开，这是个极好的维稳控舆借口。
@ChenWeina: Rivers across the whole country are all polluted. How could it even be possible cover all of that up?
陈微娜：全国河流都污染，怎么能全捂住呢？
@TaoHaijunReporter: They’ve obstructed the voice of reporters, but can they obstruct the voice of the entire people?
陶海军记者:防了记者之口，能防全民之口？
Via CDT Chinese. Translated by Little Bluegill.
