"Do No Evil" With Chinese Characteristics

(UPDATE 8) What do China bloggers* think about Google.cn, a censored version of web search?

Danwei's report is a must-read.

... When using the Chinese Google to search for "sensitive words" like Falungong and Tiananmen, the following message is displayed at the bottom of the search result page: 据当地法律法规和政策，部分搜索结果未予显示. It means "To comply with local laws, regulations and policies, some search results are not displayed".

That message is a clear indication to anyone with curiosity that there are more juicy offerings about that subject in the big bad world of the international Internet. Google's American-hosted servers are still accessible from China at Google.com ...

The self-righteous anger is absurd. People who say Google should pull out of China rather than offer a censored service do not use the Internet in China ...

Danwei confirms what I thought - Google.cn with servers in China is censored. But Google.com and its simplified Chinese version which are powered by servers outside China are still open to mainland Chinese users. It is up to Chinese netizens to choose. Of course if they are searching for Chinese entertainment news they would use Google.cn because presumably it would be more stable. What is more interesting (paradoxical, perhaps) is that when one is searching for Tiananmen for travel arrangements with Google.cn, he will find a reminder that the search results are censored. So as Danwei observes, the message may well be seen as "a stand against censorship in a small way".

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A censored Google.cn is doing much better than Baidu, a Beijing-based Nasdaq-listed market leader, in advancing the flow of information. I did a search of "六四" (June 4, the date of the Tiananmen massacre) at both Google.cn and Baidu in Hong Kong. True, one can find nothing "politically incorrect" at the disinfected Google.cn. But at least one is informed about the fact that the search results have been censored.

And guess what I got from Baidu?

"Page cannot be displayed". Until I disconnected the internet and deleted all cookies, Baidu is no longer accessible.

ESWN has highlighted the absurdity and ignorance of those who claim that the Chinese netizens should boycott MSN Spaces for the ripping off Anti's Chinese blog: the simple and cruel fact is, there is no better alternative. The same can be said for web search. Baidu is anything but a friend of free speech.

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ESWN presents a detailed comparison of Baidu, Google.com and google.cn.

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Life after Jiangxi Blog actually talked about Google China's self-censorship with Chinese internet users. 1oo% of the two respondents said "who cares?"

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"Storm-outside-the-teacup", said ESWN.

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Google is not Amnesty International: Flagrant Harbour (via SW)

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Lively debates at the Peking Duck.

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"Google seems to be trying to minimize it's evilness in several ways" Rebecca MacKinnon, research Fellow at Berkman Center for Internet and Society.

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People who have cheered for Google's honouring its refusal to be evil might want to give a second thought. There is a word for Google's "do no evil" mantra: sloganeering.

Google China's logo: Hammer and sickle (designed by Point Five)

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(Reuters) Google agrees to censor service to enter China

... The new Chinese service at http://www.google.cn/ will offer a censored version of Google's popular search system that could restrict access to thousands of terms and Web sites.

Hot topics might include issues like independence for Taiwan or Tibet or outlawed spiritual group Falun Gong ...

Google has long offered a full-featured Chinese language version of its Google.com service available to users worldwide and run from computers in its California headquarters.

Company officials said they expect in the coming months to begin running the Google.cn service from facilities within China in order to ensure speedier search results for users in China and to meet local laws governing domestic Web services ...

Google officials said they planned to notify users of its Google.cn service when the company has restricted access to certain search terms or the Web sites behind them.

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*"China bloggers" includes Chinese bloggers and who are blogging primarily on China.

Related Post:
A list of China search engines