LINDA WERTHEIMER, HOST: As the Syrian government continues its struggle for control over the country, the Internet has remained a lifeline for many rebels in Syria. Activists have relied on social media sites to disseminate videos and photos that counter the Assad regime's official account of the uprising. And helping to keep Syria's free flow of information going is an Internet service provider from a most unlikely place. A Chinese company called PCCW now carries most of the Web traffic in and out of Syria. That's according to Renesys, a New Hampshire-based firm that tracks Internet traffic around the world. China may be the land where YouTube and Facebook are banned, but so far Chinese telecom companies can still do business with Syria. Apparently, the Hong Kong-based PCCW is located outside of China's great firewall of Web censorship.
The number of significant internet outages in Syria over the past six weeks or so has been increasing. One of the main Internet providers keeping Syria online, however, is a company based in Hong Kong. Weekend Edition Sunday guest host Linda Wertheimer has more.