The lesson from China is that you don't have to block a site with no leaks. You make a service unreliable or complicated to access, and provide a local alternative that does 90% of what people want. People drift towards the easy option, and network effects lock them in.

Piercing the Chinese firewall is why I started experimenting with Friendica in 2011. Talking to people on the ground quickly made me realise how naïve that was. Whatever goals AP has, smuggling news into or out of totalitarian regimes is not one you should invest in.