Two days ago, a notice was distributed among online forum managers asking them not to continue the Grass Mud Horse Hyperbole by active moderation of posts. The latest report from GFW blog is that the term “Grass Mud Horse” has disappeared in Google and Yahoo search engine in China.

The ban is related to western mainstream media report (in particular New York Times) on the Grass Mud Horse and the interpretation of the spoof as a netizen resistance towards the internet censorship mechanism in China. The administration notice said:

One shouldn't promote any content related with Grass Mud Horse, don't turn it into hyperbole (including xx legendary creatures and river crab). It names and criticizes mop.com. The issue has been elevated into a political level, overseas media has turned it into a story of netizen and government confrontation.

However, it seems that the authority feels micro management in the forum level is inadequate and decides to give pressure to search engines. Below is GFW blog's screen capture of the search result of “草泥马”:

More about censorship of Grass Mud Horse see: Goodbye to Grass Mud Horse at globalvoicesonline.org