Google announced last week it would no longer cooperate with the Chinese government’s censorship of web content, possibly ceasing all operations in the country.

The decision came after attacks on Google’s computer systems from hackers opposing censorship by the Chinese government, as well as Google’s own ethical objection to the policy.

‘We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on google.com, and so over the next few weeks we will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all,’ Google’s Chief Legal Officer and Senior Vice President of Corporate Development David Drummond said in a statement on Google’s blog.

Google was cognizant of potential conflict in its initial Chinese agreement, Drummond said in the statement, but gave the government the benefit of the doubt.

‘We launched Google.cn in January 2006 in the belief that the benefits of increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet outweighed our discomfort in agreeing to censor some results,’ he said.

The move has inspired debate about corporate responsibility, as Google has been criticized in the past for abetting government censorship of banned topics since its arrival in China in 2006.

It is unclear how the search giant’s potential withdrawal may affect the economic futures of both Google and China as China continues to expand its economic influence.

College of Arts and Sciences freshman Ge Wang, who was raised in Beijing, said Google’s possible departure from China would have greater impact on the Chinese economy than on the average Chinese citizen.

‘If Google quit China, China’s [gross domestic product] would probably decrease,’ Wang said. ‘The majority of people in China don’t use Google but there are many foreign corporations in China that do. It would hurt the businesses the most.’

Google’s chief competitor in China is Baidu, a locally run website that works closely with the Chinese government to block banned content.

College of Communication sophomore Fanjing Meng said although most Chinese citizens use Baidu, it has many disadvantages.

‘It’s so much worse compared to Google,’ Meng said. ‘It comes up with information that has no relevance to the keyword I typed.’

Meng said she does not think Google should leave the Chinese market.

‘I think when a company goes into another country, they have to change to fit into that country,’ Meng said. ‘Google should consider the reality of the Chinese government, but they should hang in there and compete in the Chinese market since they are so much better than Baidu.’

CAS freshman Yite Liu said Google’s departure from China would hurt both parties.

‘China is a big market,’ Liu said. ‘As it grows, it needs a big firm like Google. And Google can profit from such a big market, so it’s a mutual benefit.’

Wang said that although she disapproves of government censorship, she thinks Google should be more adaptive to Chinese customs.

‘Google’s failure is that they didn’t adapt to Chinese culture, so the majority of people don’t use Google,’ Wang said. ‘It’s not right to censor the Internet, but it is the traditional way of the Chinese government. They have to change the system, but not today.’

Beyond the Google conundrum, Meng said she is frustrated with the Chinese government’s control in general.

‘I understand that the Chinese government wants a stable and harmonious society, but it’s not wise for them to censor Google,’ Meng said. ‘A lot of my friends are very frustrated with the government censoring content.

‘This is going way too far,’ she said. ‘Everyone has the right to know what’s going on in the world.’
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