section_path: History/Early news networks/Asia
section_name: Asia
paragraph_text: Asia
  
  The world's first written news may have originated in eighth century BCE China, where reports gathered by officials were eventually compiled as the Spring and Autumn Annals. The annals, whose compilation is attributed to Confucius, were available to a sizeable reading public and dealt with common news themes—though they straddle the line between news and history. The Han dynasty is credited with developing one of the most effective imperial surveillance and communications networks in the ancient world. Government-produced news sheets, called tipao, circulated among court officials during the late Han dynasty (second and third centuries AD). Between 713 and 734, the Kaiyuan Za Bao ("Bulletin of the Court") of the Chinese Tang dynasty published government news; it was handwritten on silk and read by government officials. The court created a Bureau of Official Reports (Jin Zhouyuan) to centralize news distribution for the court. Newsletters called ch'ao pao continued to be produced and gained wider public circulation in the following centuries. In 1582 there was the first reference to privately published newssheets in Beijing, during the late Ming dynasty.
  
  Japan had effective communications and postal delivery networks at several points in its history, first in 646 with the Taika Reform and again during the Kamakura period from 1183 to 1333. The system depended on hikyaku, runners, and regularly spaced relay stations. By this method, news could travel between Kyoto and Kamakura in 5–7 days. Special horse-mounted messengers could move information at the speed of 170 kilometers per day. The Japanese shogunates were less tolerant than the Chinese government of news circulation. The postal system established during the Edo period was even more effective, with average speeds of 125–150 km/day and express speed of 200 km/day. This system was initially used only by the government, taking private communications only at exorbitant prices. Private services emerged and in 1668 established their own nakama (guild). They became even faster, and created an effective optical telegraphy system using flags by day and lanterns and mirrors by night.