Google Leaves China, Chinese Netizen Reactions

Yesterday morning, Google announced that they have closed google.cn and are forwarding users to google.com.hk. This is of course big news but the news has been very carefully controlled.

From NetEase:

网易黑龙江哈尔滨网友:

The reason I like Google is because I can search related information, can access many foreign material for reference.
Here I must mention Baidu. Baidu’s search is indeed not that good, but Baidu Zhidao [similar to Yahoo! Answers] is very useful~
But forcefully and maliciously installing IE plugins/software, I hate! (I usually just use Baidu to listen to music.)
Now there are only these two search engines. One has left. Us Chinese netizens have no choice/can do nothing. We can only use Baidu(The things you can search on Yahoo and other search engines are not really to my liking).
Just looking at the present. Google, I want to say to you, I used to really like using your search engine.
But you want to treat a purely commercial incident as China-US relations political weight. Then that is you being wrong.

网易广东广州网友:

Google is only a company, it has no right to make irresponsible remarks about China’s affairs. Those who can observe China’s laws, China more than welcomes, but those who cannot observe, please find another place to go, we definitely won’t force you to stay. During this Google incident, Google has clearly overestimated itself, thinking it can hold hostage the governments of both China and America, only regretting that in the end it “tried to steal the chicken but lost the bait” [started out trying to hurt others but ended up being hurt], and allowed itself to dejectedly be swept out the door.

网易广东深圳网友:

Search on Baidu and it is full of advertisements!!! FK!

网易湖北武汉网友:

Well done, government, those in support, ding me!

网易陕西西安网友:

Google in China is just a small company. No matter how bad Baidu is, its market share is still 76%.
That failed Google was forced out by other competing companies shows that Google is not good enough/cannot succeed.
Google insisting on finding a reason for its failure is what I despise the most.
With this kind of company, forget failing, even if it died no one would sympathize!

网易湖南长沙网友:

If you need anything, please Baidu it! To be honest, Google’s search function is indeed better than Baidu! Because the stuff you can find is indeed much more abundant than Baidu, but [I am not saying this] to glorify Google. If Google wants a place within China, then it needs to respect and observer China’s laws when doing business. Foreign companies that don’t respect China’s laws and culture leaving, well that is inevitable. At the same time, I hope Baidu can improve on the search front!

网易江苏盐城网友:

If it is going to leave, then leave cleanly. Kick it thoroughly out of China.

网易浙江杭州网友:

I personally believe that Google, you as a company, here doing business, you must observer China’s laws. Moreover, you also should not find fault with China’s political issues. Doing this will only make us dislike you guys even more.

网易火星网友:

Google’s decision this time is a failure, with Google exiting the market as the only result; Hong Kong is likewise China’s territory, and Hong Kong’s legislature also wants filtering, because what is not allowed domestically cannot be allowed in Hong Kong. I have already uninstalled Google from my computer. I support the government’s decision, and the government cannot possibly give in…

网易北京海淀网友:

I just know that on this piece of land that is the mainland, any media company, whether internet or newspaper, cannot be independent, because the Party manages the media.

网易河北廊坊网友:

Google is simply insulting us, repeatedly saying it will withdraw from China, but now running to Hong Kong. Hong Kong is also China’s. This is truly insisting on being shameless. Without you, Chinese people will live on as usual. With you, it is extremely annoying. Hope you will never come back.

网易云南楚雄州楚雄网友:

Google, I used to always use you, but you have too TMD disappointed me. Get lost, I will go use the slightly more garbage Baidu.

网易安徽合肥网友:

With netizens from all around the country, how can all the speech and slogans be so similar/consistent? Oh, right, I had forgotten that there are also foreign comrades and many international friends.

Slogans, anyone can shout. Shouting back and forth and the nationalism comes out.

网易美国网友:

Mainlanders, congratulations, you can no longer use Google. It is so dark there! With any bad thing so easily searched out, I recommend that you guys just go ahead and shut out the outside internet, and establish the world’s largest LAN.

Many Chinese netizen comments have been deleted or hidden and most comments that remain visible clearly support the government or are critical of Google. You can see this in the translated comments from NetEase above.

On KDS, a popular Shanghai BBS discussion forum, I was able to find some comments in support of Google or critical of the government before they were deleted. KDS moderators first deleted posts with many replies before deleting the smaller posts with fewer replies. Many posts were deleted while I was still collecting comments from them.

From KDS:

绵羊心:

First, I don’t believe the what the ZF says, and this has nothing to do with whether or not I like Google, it only relates the ZF‘s behavior. Next, I like Google, because the value of their first page of information [search results] is higher than Baidu. I am a consumer, don’t care about whatever dog fart politics, nor would I think of everything from a political perspective, but from a consumer’s perspective, I like Google, and no longer having Google I think is really regrettable.

奥巴牛:

There are only two types of people who will be happy: 1, wumao , 2, Baidu.

萝卜:

With regards to Google withdrawing I do not feel any happiness, but instead feel that it is very regrettable. Google’s product is the various types of information you can search, and inspecting the product before it leaves the factory to see if it is acceptable is a very normal thing. The information that can be found on Google are not just those sensitive words that must be filtered. If you like to use Google to search for scientific and technical information, what impact does filtering out those sensitive words have?

爱如空气:

It is obvious through use that Google’s [search results] value is higher than Baidu. Baidu is really too lousy.

Freddie:

Wumao wishes Google would make a row every month.
1. Always material to write about.
2. “Fees” have caps and are disbursed monthly, benefits can be maximized.
3. If a LAN is really established, then many people will probably lose this job.

蓝色诱惑:

Wumao are rampant, they better secure their overtime pay. What we need is the truth, how are sensitive terms defined? What will not die is whatever TG [The Government] says, that everything that it does not like are sensitive words, keeping the people in the dark. 

[Translation: “Too fucking stinky! I’m not fucking eating with you guys anymore!”]

睡乾陇:

Compared to Google, Baidu is simply garbage.

Only knowing how to take money and put advertisements, with all the search results being advertisements for garbage.

The principle of web search is that what you searched for is what is, so manipulated search results is simply garbage.

We can all think, we don’t need other people to tell us what is right and what is wrong, we can collect information from various angles and judge for ourselves, only those people who have done guilty things would screen/filter information.

stuka:

Google will forever be in my heart!

FLY D:

The absolute most basic point, competition is good for consumers. The more intense the competition, the more benefits for us, and the service we get more thorough.
Whenever something no longer has competition and becomes a monopoly, then we suffer.

MJ的马甲:

Actually I am not indignant, only that us not being able to engage in normal internet activity after a certain government attaches some labels to mainstream large websites one after another, I can’t help comforting myself as well as feeling threatened. With the speech we have nowadays, what’s wrong with this??

tian:

Google is the world’s top level creative company, Baidu is garbage.

葱油伴面:

Can search engines only be used to search for anti-D [党, dang, the Communist Party] and sex?

Don’t you know that I use Google everyday to search for many technical data? Why don’t I use Baidu? Because I can’t find it on Baidu. Or the information I find requires that I spend more energy to sort through.

adai:

I seeking true search results, and hate those manipulated Baidu search results! It is painful right now, having to wait and see [what happens next]…

sossmart:

At the critical moment, Hong Kong shows where it is superior. Hong Kong people are so lucky.

绵羊心:

Many of the documents in my dissertation were found on Google Academic Edition [?], and this too was something my mentor recommended to me. The ZF doing this really hurts those of us ordinary common people who do not care about politics.

It is important to say that many comments (before they were deleted) that support Google did not support Google’s decision to leave China. Many Chinese netizens disagree with the government’s censorship but do not agree with Google’s actions and feel that Google leaving China is a very regrettable outcome.

From KDS:

The news about Google on Sohu has nearly 600 responses all cursing Google, with not a single one in support of Google. We cannot help but admire our Party’s superior technology and the people’s high degree of unity. The consequences of Google’s exit are evident.

duck:

Wumao need to eat too, right?

桥mm:

The era of the internet black society has come.

马勒格彼得:

What I care about is how many posts have been deleted.

king:

You can randomly comment about the Google incident in the comments for other news items, and then it will definitely be a mess.

isrufile:

On one hand saying our internet is free, on another hand wanting to filter information,
this is already shameless to new level.

囧囧有神:

Upon checking the backend, several dozen IDs are all from one IP.

kodoku:

It isn’t just Sohu, various major websites are all like this. The problem is that YP have all be brainwashed or is it that the wumao has collectively come out?

无伐是名匪:

Sina and Sohu’s comments you actually believe/trust? IQ… [don’t be stupid]

FredTheRed:

I changed my signature on Kaixin001 this afternoon, and now it won’t show anymore.
“Farewell Google.cn. It is now already Google.com.hk”

From KDS:

和谐者:

Ding LZ, GG [谷歌 gu ge, Google] is too useless, not worth being respected, not helping anyone, its words even more fake than the ZF.

铁牛哥哥:

Don’t rush, it is now the Chinese Communist Party’s move in this chess game, Google already made its move.
It is too early to say who will win and who will lose.

W.S.Q:

A company wanting to fight a country, is there a possibility of success?

★上山论贱:

Google should be even tougher, if they are leaving China then they shouldn’t let Chinese people visit/use any Google services, including GMail.

里斯霍恩:

Google: How much is an Avatar movie ticket?
Avatar movie ticket has increased in price, 120 yuan.
Google: So expensive, I won’t buy it.
Okay.
Google: If you truly consider 120 yuan, then I won’t buy your movie ticket.
Ah?
Google: No no, I still want to watch Avatar.
So are you going to buy or not?
Google: But with you selling at 120 yuan, I will still consider not watching.
Person in line: Are you TM going to buy or not?!
Mental retard: Well done! Forcing the cinema to lower from 120 to 100.

yaojing:

I see it the other way, Google’s move is too beautiful, how come I didn’t think of it!

Everyone think about it, transferring to Hong Kong, first, this place is still considered China, I think 90% of Chinese agree (10% mental retards don’t count), and Hong Kong, whether culturally, economically, or other aspects are all superior to the mainland.

Google being in this place that is still considered part of China where it can operate an unfiltered search engine without encountering the opposition of this part of China’s government, what does this demonstrate? It amply demonstrates that the filtering system is unreasonable, that all of the harmful information is simply not harmful to Chinese people, because if it were harmful to Chinese people, then why doesn’t the Hong Kong government blacklist them???

After everyone understands this problem, everyone should ask, why can’t we see the things those Hong Kong people can see??? Aren’t we all Chinese people???

Too beautiful! Google, you have once again made me admire you!

See Also:

• “Google Losing the Message” (china/divide)
• “Google Redirects! But Will The Chinese Government Block?!” (china/divide)
• “Google’s Hong Kong Gambit Is Public Relations Victory” (china/divide)
• Best VPNs for China to access Google 

See what Hong Kong people can see. chinaSMACK personals.