Tech Companies Queried on Human Rights in China

By Geoff Duncan February 3, 2010

Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) has sent letters to more than two dozen of the United States’ leading technology and Internet companies, asking each of them “what, if any, measures it will implement to ensure that its products and services do not facilitate human rights abuses by the Chinese government.” And Durbin’s inquiry carries some weight: he chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law, and is one of the Senate’s most senior members. Companies queried by Durbin include Google, Facebook, Skype, eBay, Microsoft, and Apple.

The letter is a followup to a letter Durbin sent to a smaller set of companies last year, urging companies to adopt a voluntary code of conduct for companies operating in countries that restrict access to the INternet. Yahoo, Google, and Microsoft supported the proposed code of conduct. However, to date only Google has put its foot down, recently announcing it will no longer cooperate with Chinese government censorship on its Google.cn Chinese-language search engine and threatening to cease operations in China altogether. So far, no other U.S. technology companies have joined Google in taking a stance against Chinese Internet censorship.

Senator Dick Durbin — Image used with permission by copyright holder

“I commend Google for coming to the conclusion that cooperating with the ‘Great Firewall’ of China is inconsistent with their human rights responsibilities,” Durbin said in a statement. “Google sets a strong example in standing up to the Chinese government’s continued failure to respect the fundamental human rights of free expression and privacy. I look forward to learning more about whether other American companies are willing to follow Google’s lead.”

Recommended Videos

And Durbin might well learn something: he’s scheduled a hearing next month on global Internet freedoms next month; the event will feature testimony from Google and other companies regarding their business practices in companies that restrict Internet access and censor online content.

Durbin’s letters of inquiry follow on a recent major policy speech by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that for the first time articulated Internet freedoms as a major plank in the United States’ foreign policy platform. China has characterized U.S. and Western calls for Internet freedom as a form of cultural imperialism.

Companies receigin Durbin’s query that weren’t included in Durbin’s earlier letter include some surprises like Amazon, IBM, Oracle, and RIM. Companies that didn’t bother responding to Durbin’s previous query include Acer, Toshiba, and…Twitter.

Topics

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

Computing

How to change margins in Google Docs

Laptop Working from Home

When you create a document in Google Docs, you may need to adjust the space between the edge of the page and the content --- the margins. For instance, many professors have requirements for the margin sizes you must use for college papers.

You can easily change the left, right, top, and bottom margins in Google Docs and have a few different ways to do it.

Computing

What is Microsoft Teams? How to use the collaboration app

A close-up of someone using Microsoft Teams on a laptop for a videoconference.

Online team collaboration is the new norm as companies spread their workforce across the globe. Gone are the days of primarily relying on group emails, as teams can now work together in real time using an instant chat-style interface, no matter where they are.

Using Microsoft Teams affords video conferencing, real-time discussions, document sharing and editing, and more for companies and corporations. It's one of many collaboration tools designed to bring company workers together in an online space. It’s not designed for communicating with family and friends, but for colleagues and clients.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, using Google Docs proves it still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all, and millions still use Microsoft Word. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.