Occupation: Journalist
Status: Imprisoned
Shi Tao, a freelance writer and journalist, was sentenced to 10 years in prison for “illegally providing state secrets to foreign entities.” In 2004, Shi leaked a document to foreign media using a Yahoo! account. The item summarized government orders to news organizations, including instructions to downplay the 15th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Reporters Without Borders blasted Yahoo! for releasing Shi’s information to the state.
—by Kate Springer