Yesterday Google decided censorship isn’t on the list of evil as it said would launch versions of its search and news Web sites in China that censor material deemed objectionable to authorities there, reasoning that users getting limited access to content was better than none.
“Google.cn will comply with local Chinese laws and regulations,” Andrew McLaughlin, senior policy counsel for Google said in a statement. “In deciding how best to approach the Chinese–or any–market, we must balance our commitments to satisfy the interest of users, expand access to information, and respond to local conditions.”
Google
Via Instapundit:
Publius has more, and points out the oddity of Google being more willing to cooperate with the Chinese than with the American government. “Perhaps they should change their motto to, ‘It’s just business.'”
Re:Google
Indeed, many are claiming Google’s shunning of the government’s request has nothing to do with protecting privacy, but rather trade secrets, which could be reverse engineered from making such massive lists (potentially) public.
As with the censored Chinese Google News, when it comes to removing content, from Google News sources to multiple DMCA complaints to the now infamous Google Print caving in to publishers legal threats, the company has been consistent: they do what’s best for stockholder value. I don’t see how their slogan can be “do no evil” for much longer.
Re:Google
They can use our slogan which is “to be less worse”