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Freedom-Fighter Google a Good Guy Again

Taking stand against China reclaims 'don't be evil' motto

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Jan 13, 2010 4:13 AM CST

(Newser) – Standing up to China has helped Google regain some of that "don't be evil" aura lost as the company became a behemoth, writes Adam Ostrow. By telling China it will no longer censor search results, the firm has shown that it's willing to put principles before profit, Ostrow notes in Mashable. Google is now threatening to pull out of the nation entirely because of attacks on activists' email, AP reports.

It's highly unlikely that China will allow Google to operate as an unfiltered search engine, so taking a stand will almost certainly hit the company's bottom line, especially if its rivals don't follow suit, Ostrow notes. The standing ovation will need to wait until we see what kind of agreement emerges, but "at least for a day or two, we can once again think of Google as a company that stands for more than a never ending quest for market share and profit."

[Images (1)]

[Quotes (1)]

Visitors stand at the reception of the Google China headquarters in Beijing, China, Wednesday, Oct. 13, 2009. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

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We have decided we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cn. - Blog post from Google exec
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Freedom-Fighter Google a Good Guy Again