Society moves online in brave new world

Online charity

Sina Weibo launched its charity platform on Feb 17, allowing nearly 1 million of its verified users to initiate charity programs. More than 16 million yuan was collected for about 2,000 programs.

Of the 6,000 people who have received help, Lu Chao is probably the most famous.

Lu, 23, whose online name is "Lu Ruoqing", was diagnosed with leukemia in 2012 and had been updating her Sina Weibo micro blog about her treatment. She gave up stem cell transplantation because of the expected 400,000 yuan cost.

Many netizens supported and encouraged her after an online celebrity reposted her micro blog, calling for help from others in mid-May. Some doubted her identity, but the rumors were soon dismissed.

The well-known investor Xue Manzi started a program on Sina Weibo's charity platform, aimed at raising 1 million yuan for Lu, together with China Youth Development Foundation, a public foundation in Beijing.

The target was reached within three days. After successful stem cell transplant surgery in Beijing in July, Lu is recovering and often helps others with similar experiences, by reposting their micro blogs.

"Thanks to micro blogs, everyone can contribute to charity by donating several yuan or reposting. Many a little make a mickle, so that even one millon yuan can be raised in a day," Xue wrote in his micro blog.

Gangnam Style

The Internet has been bombarded with the song Gangnam Style by South Korean rapper Psy since it debuted on July 15.

The music clip began to go viral in late July when celebrities such as Tom Cruise, Britney Spears and Katy Perry either commented or shared the video on the micro-blogging service Twitter.

It became YouTube's most watched video in November, beating Justin Bieber's Baby, which previously held the record. On Dec 21, it made history as the first video on YouTube to reach 1 billion hits and now has more than 1.14 billion views.

Psy became an overnight global celebrity and even performed at the New Year's Eve celebration in Times Square, New York.

Meanwhile, various imitations flourished in China, especially the dance's horse steps, not only among celebrities such as TV host Zhao Zhongxiang, but also everyday netizens.

It was to be expected that in most Chinese corporations' year-end parties, Gangnam Style would be ubiquitous, just like on the Internet.