Part of the Internet's magic is the freedom it bestows to travel as far as your mind can take you. But not if you're in China, where the totalitarian government is leery of the Internet and hostile to the merest mention of such ideas as freedom.
No surprise there. What is a shock is that several huge U.S. companies are helping China muzzle free expression.
Software giant Microsoft has agreed to block certain words - democracy, freedom and human rights among them - by users on parts of its new Chinese Internet portal. According to news reports, the words trigger this message: "This item should not contain forbidden speech, such as profanity."
Freedom, profane?
What's actually profane is a company that built its fortune on the freedom provided by the American system helping a repressive regime censor such ideas. Sadder still is that Microsoft has company among other U.S. tech concerns that should know better:
Yahoo China signed a pledge of "self-discipline" in 2002, vowing to refrain from posting "pernicious information that may jeopardize state security."
Google launched a news search engine in China last year, but searchers in China get a different list of news links than someone doing a similar search in the USA. Missing links include the BBC and Voice of America, which carry reports not to China's liking.
The importance of this should not be underestimated. The Internet and capitalism were supposed to jump-start democracy in former communist regimes. These actions suggest a different future: One in which companies and dictators share benefits in suppressing democratic communications.
The companies offer terse explanations.
A Google spokesman says it has removed sources that wouldn't be accessible to users in China anyway to create "the best possible news search experience." Microsoft and Yahoo spokesmen say companies must obey laws and regulations of the countries where they do business.
True, up to a point. But companies with traditions of defending free speech have rejected such compromises. For instance, Time, USA TODAY, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have policies against bowing to censorship. Time Asia was banned for three years in China for running afoul of censors with a story on the Falun Gong sect.
Apologists argue that U.S. companies would be locked out of China if they didn't cooperate, closing China off from outside influence. But the Chinese government needs them as much as they need the Chinese. A little hard bargaining might go a long way.
Ultimately, censorship might prove futile. Internet use in China has quadrupled since 2000. There's no way even China's censors can keep 94 million users away from ideas the government finds objectionable.
The American experience is that ideas are impossible to quell. Companies that have flourished in that free system would do better to stand up to censors than to join them.
Hmm, you might have to accept that Democrazy is not the necessary greatest thing in the world....as for the companies its not their problem they do as they are asked and get payed for that capitalism ....the Times and aother News Organisations are a whole different thing they can be biased to that extend because Freedom is what makes them what they are.
does that justify their actions?
if so, then any tragic apathy committed throughout history is excusable.
i dont suggest that it be punishable, but you insinuate that their hands are still clean. i say bullshit.
Yes I notice you say that...I say Bullshit that you say Bullshit.
Whatever, just because one government believes Freedom and Democrazy to be the greatest thing doesn't mean the other has to......I know I feel the same as you, I think freedom is great and I kind of like democrazy but the companies don't have to care...they are not moral organisations and they don't have to be
If you seriously think simply denying China these services is the way forwards, then it is you talking bullshit.
Fact is, there is no moral superiority in refusing to give China a damn search engine, or the like- just bloody mindedness that achieves nothing. And as Microsoft says, yes, they do have to abide by local laws.
The people of China are better with these things than without. That China forces these services to be not as good as they could be is a shame- but to therefore DENY them is plain silly.
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"We've got maybe seconds before Darth Rosenberg grinds everybody into Jawa burgers and not one of you buds has the midi-chlorians to stop her!"
bardock, i'm not trying to do is insist that 'freedom' and 'democracy' are good or bad, but rather not 'profane'. the fact that they are censored is just disturbing...sad.
there is a difference between negotiation and giving up a contract.
"Ultimately, censorship might prove futile. Internet use in China has quadrupled since 2000. There's no way even China's censors can keep 94 million users away from ideas the government finds objectionable."
whatever the case, i believe this line says it all. silver lining
I can understand Microsoft's position on this. What I don't understand is why other countries don't stand up to China on this. The UN turns a blind eye to the human rights violations. The US does tremendous business with China. Instead of being disappointed with Microsoft, maybe the attention should be turned to all the other democratic countries in the world for allowing this type of censorship.
They are flippin' Commies!!!! They are looking out for the best interest of their country and keeping any ideas of freedom out so they won't have a revolt on their hands. Of course I also think it's sad but it's just life.
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"Jesus also thought that non-believers should be stoned"------Alliance
No no. I'm talking about from the point of view of the Chinese government. If they want to keep a hold on the people they are gonna do things like this.
The people should not accept it. And as for me I think it is 'just life' because I can't really do anything about it; if I ever get into a position where I can do something about it I will.
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"Jesus also thought that non-believers should be stoned"------Alliance
Last edited by Echuu on Jun 21st, 2005 at 03:47 PM
No way in hell that they will do that. China will become to important for them, most country's have a habit of letting people do whatever they want as long as those country's are more powerful then they are.
About the subject, what should Microsoft have done? They really had no choice. The search engines, well they didn't have much of a choice either. Its either do it or not go there at all. They want to make money its the goal of the company. If they can make millions by doing something like that then they should, I may not like it but company's have done things that are far worse, that I can't understand at all. Here I just don't like it, but I really can not blame them for doing it.
KMC Community Forums
Jun 21st, 2005 02:24 PM
how could them do it?
