Seriously, Don't Be Evil
Remember how Google's motto is "Don't be evil" but they allowed Chinese censors to block out "harmful" stuff like the history of the Tiananmen Square massacres of 1989? Well, they're at it again.
Boing Boing links to a report that Google's new property YouTube has cut a deal similar to Google's in China in which the site will be unblocked on the condition it agrees to work with the government to take down videos "deemed offensive to Thai people or those that violate Thai law." Read: dissident postings that speak negatively of the Thai Monarchy like those that originally caused the site to be blocked.
The battle for digital information in has become one of the most important fronts of organic democratic movements around the world. Google and Yahoo's China troubles are only the most well-known of a myriad of similar cases.
If you want to know more, check out Global Voices.
Oh, but he's so cute with all those little medals he wears on his golden throne. And "The King and I" is one of my all-time favorites.
Kidding aside: a major internet corporation kowtowing to Beijing is bad. But a major internet corporation kowtowing to the goofball generals currently running Bangkok (for at least the next month or two) is just pathetic. YouTube will be around longer than this Thai government will. Hell, Google should be dictating terms to them, not the other way around.
"All governments lie, but disaster lies in wait for countries whose officials smoke the same hashish they give out." - I.F. Stone
August 31, 2007 3:12 AM | Reply | Permalink
"There ought to be limits to freedom!" - guess who said that.
Isn't that country Siam from My Fair Lady?
But seriously, I strongly disagree with censorship.
Perhaps Google hopes some clever people will be able to work around the censors so long as the service is available? Constructive engagement and all that? (full disclosure: I'm wearing my Google shirt as I type this)
August 31, 2007 5:36 AM | Reply | Permalink
Uh..."Siam from My Fair Lady"? Don't you mean River City from "Oklahoma"?
"All governments lie, but disaster lies in wait for countries whose officials smoke the same hashish they give out." - I.F. Stone
August 31, 2007 6:51 AM | Reply | Permalink
Forget about Google not being evil, it's time for our government not to be toothless. After Google and Yahoo conspired with the Chinese government a few years ago (leading to blocked content and to dissidents journalists being arrested) the senate held hearings on the matter. Those hearings provided rare moments of bipartisan agreement that would make David Broder weep.
And yet, in the end, nobody every proposed any legislation requiring that American companies not assist foreign government in censoring Internet content. They could certainly have put such a law forward. It would have been constitutional (we prevent companies from bribing foreign government officials, after all) and it this is the proper role for government, not Google.
If Google's attitude is "We're just there to sell stuff, not to guard human rights in Asia," I can understand that. I think it's craven and cowardly, but I understand that. We have a government, though. The government can force Google, and other companies operating abroad, not to be craven and cowardly, at least in this arena. Am I disappointed in Google? Sure. But I'm far more disappointed in the government that held hearings and then did nothing.
thosethingswesay.blogspot.com
August 31, 2007 7:07 AM | Reply | Permalink
a quibble on this part:
It's unnecessary to use that kind of wording, it's not "forcing" them, as all a law would be doing is leveling the playing field, establishing rules of the game. They do it/did because if they didn't, someone else would, and they lose the foot in the door. I even recall some of the involved execs complaining that they were put in the position of having to do like foreign policy and they'd rather not, they'd rather not have to figure out what's good or evil for the entire populace of the U.S. But as long as other guys are out there and Congress has made no rules for the game, that they're going to try for the market, and do their best judgment on the good/evil thing.
August 31, 2007 7:21 AM | Reply | Permalink
You're right, it's not force. It'd be our government creating rules that our people would like.
thosethingswesay.blogspot.com
August 31, 2007 7:23 AM | Reply | Permalink