Google Versus China
Is Sec. Clinton really Kojak ... or vice versa?
I have been watching and reading … albeit with a bit of awe and a lot of curiousity … the current flap between Google, which desires to extend its marketing tentacles before the people of China, and the Chinese government, which wants to continue its policies of control and censorship. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton leads the pack of American politicians and government leaders to decry China’s restrictions on Google operating in China.
On one hand, I’m not pleased that China censors news and information flow into and out across its borders. But, so does Iran, Syria and a number of other countries. Even India imposes levels of censorship. But … it is their country, and it’s up to the peoples of those respective countries to strive for change. Ms. Clinton has no business playing Kojak for U.S. special interests that want to dominate online marketing in foreign countries.
From the PR and influence peddling viewpoint, here’s something that may bring better understanding to China’s objections about Google – a story in today’s New York Times by Sam Grobart about Google’s not-so-subtle style of commercialism.
Check it out yourself … go to Google.com and enter “A” in the search box. What comes up? Amazon. Then, enter “B” and Best Buy comes up. “C” is Craigslist, “E” is ebay and so on. “W” is Walmart (of course). You get the picture.
What signals is the U.S. sending if not a signal of imperialism? There’s nothing wrong with the Secretary of State and other politicians objecting to censorship and moving on with more important business (like denial of human and religious rights around the world … or, Haiti, perhaps?). But, the level of hue and cry by U.S. government leaders rushing to Google’s defense lacks a certain level of … well, it feels like nothing more than a crass attempt to cozy up to a massive commercial enterprise with deep pockets filled with unfettered political contributions. Shame on China for censorship but also shame on political enrichment in the name of free speech.
I didn’t like the TV character Kojak, either.
Filed Under: Competitive Positioning • Featured
About the Author: David is a veteran communications strategist ... writer ... blogger ... online publisher ... and Emmy Award winning former CBS Network News correspondent. He lives in the Washington, D. C., area, and works worldwide.
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