There’s been a lot of publicity around Google’s launch of google.cn this week, and its decision to block access to web sites on topics that are ’sensitive’ to the Chinese government. Searches about human rights, Tibet, and other sensitive topics only reveal pages that express the government’s point of view.
While I don’t want to get into a discussion on the whole issue of censorhip, communism and the rest, one quote did catch my attention. U.S. Congressman Chris Smith, said it was “astounding” that Google, whose company motto is “Don’t Be Evil,” would cooperate with such censorship “just to make a buck.”
What do you think? Is Google’s decision to censor the Chinese public’s access to unbiased information sources an ‘evil’ move? It’s a complex issue and difficult to say objectively yes or know.
I personally believe it’s a step in the wrong direction, and perhaps Google is starting to forget its roots. I’m all for capitalism, and ‘making a buck’ - but I’m also for integrity, and if you are going to have a company motto and set of guiding principles you should try hard to stick to them.
It is, I think, inevitable that Google will grow and mature into something that people will ultimately ‘love to hate’, much like the Microsoft of today. MS was the golden child of the valley once too.
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