This is my first diary here on DK, although I've been a reader here for years, so bear with me. The Google Corporation today, a company that once said its goal was to not be evil, "has agreed to censor its results in China, adhering to the country's free-speech restrictions in return for better access in the Internet's fastest growing market." As a passionate advocate of freedom of speech and the freedom of information, and as a Sino-phile who has lived and studied in the PRC, I believe the Google Corporation, a company based on the supremacey of the free flow of information, has a responsibility to put their words into practice. How can Google ask for loyalty from its consumers, from us, and then turn its back on the very principles of the globalized internet-age, principles that make the internet what it is? Please write, call, and protest this shameful subversion of cyber-egalitarianism. More below:
"Because of government barriers set up to suppress information, Google's China users previously have been blocked from using the search engine or encountered lengthy delays in response time. --- China already has more than 100 million Web surfers and the audience is expected to swell substantially - an alluring prospect for Google as it tries to boost its already rapidly rising profits. --- To obtain the Chinese license, Google agreed to omit Web content that the country's government finds objectionable. Google will base its censorship decisons on guidance provided by Chinese government officials. Although China has loosened some of its controls in recent years, some topics, such as Taiwan's independence and 1989's Tiananmen Square massacre, remain forbidden subjects."
"Google officials characterized the censorship concessions in China as an excruciating decision for a company that adopted "don't be evil" as a motto. But management believes it's a worthwhile sacrifice. "We firmly believe, with our culture of innovation, Google can make meaningful and positive contributions to the already impressive pace of development in China," said Andrew McLaughlin, Google's senior policy counsel. Google's decision rankled Reporters Without Borders, a media watchdog group that has sharply criticized Internet companies including Yahoo and Microsoft Corp.'s MSN.com for submitting to China's censorship regime. "This is a real shame," said Julien Pain, head of Reporters Without Borders' Internet desk. "When a search engine collaborates with the government like this, it makes it much easier for the Chinese government to control what is being said on the Internet."
In other words, Google believes that in the pursuit of an ever greater profit, sacrificing the founding principles of this country is but a small price for them to pay. To stand up for freedom of speech and free access to information in China, while we still can here, you can call Google's corporate headquarters at (650) 253-0000 and politely leave your message with the receptionist (I already did). Or you can email the Google corporation at one of the following:
Google Media Hotline: press@google.com
Corporate PR: David Krane: david@google.com
Corporate PR: Steve Langdon: slangdon@google.com
Corporate PR: Lynn Fox: lfox@google.com
International PR: Debbie Frost: dfrost@google.com
Consumer PR: Eileen Rodriguez: eileen@google.com
Suggestion Box: suggestions@google.com
Praise and Compliments: comments@google.com
Please Recommend This Diary! Although it is my first, and may be sloppy and not formatted correctly, this issue surely strikes at the heart of global self-determination and self-rule. If people are not allowed free access to information, if corporations begin to side with oppressive regimes (with little to no consumer opposition) in the restriction of knowledge, I truly fear for our future. Tell Google you oppose censorship!
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2006/01/24/D8FBCF686.html