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Economist editor applauds Google
03 February 2006
Economist editor Bill Emmott has backed Google's censored entry into China, admitting that pages of his own magazine are sometimes torn out by governments in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Bangladesh.
Emmott said the decision to tell users of the search engine when results had been censored was "smart", adding: "Chinese citizens know full well that their government blocks certain information from them, so to them Google's stance would not come as a shock, and it will be helpful for them to know when their searches have been blocked."
For the first time in its history, Google agreed last week to censor the results of certain searches in its directory in order to enter the Chinese market.
Terms such as "falun gong" and "Tian An Men Square", for example, throw up far fewer results in China than the rest of the world.
There have been mixed views on the move, with some pundits suggesting it is a negative step for the freedom of the internet, and in direct opposition to Google's universal access to information ethos.
Emmott added: "My view on Google's China stance is that, in the search business, it is better for them to be there, helping Chinese people become better informed, than not to be there at all.
"The Economist would not publish a compromised or censored version of the magazine in order to get into China.
However, if the authorities tear out a page of an issue to censor it, we do not then withdraw the whole copy on grounds that it is tainted: as the censorship would be plain to anyone who saw it, no one would think we were somehow trimming our sails (as we wouldn't be)."
