The internet has black holes

There are a couple of things I quite like: anything quirky or offbeat and interesting maps (particularly historical ones). Put the two together and I’m pretty happy. The Strange Maps blog is the quirky bit in today’s post. And the map is all about the Internet’s black holes.

Like most of us, I was aware that some parts of this wonderful world we inhabit are not switched on. In the world wide web of interconnectedness, some areas on the planet are disconnected and left in the dark. And like most of us, I was aware of Thailand’s banning of YouTube (recently lifted when YouTube’s owner, Google, agreed to filter out offending videos that may be considered an insult to Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej). What I wasn’t really clued up on was just how many countries impede the free flow of information by prohibiting their citizens access to the internet.

How many countries are we talking about? Fifteen. No surprise that one of them is China. Another ‘no surprise’ is Saudi Arabia. But the map, commissioned by Reporters without Borders (mmm…is there Knowledge Managers without Borders??) also points the finger at these countries: Maldives; Tunisia; Belarus; Libya; Syria; Vietnam; Uzbekistan; Nepal; Saudi Arabia; Iran; Myanmar; Cuba; Turkmenistan; North Korea. And here’s the map: