CivicActions

It is time for Google to put its mouth where its money is.

The Internet search and advertising delivery giant has again opposed shareholder resolutions that would have required it meet minimum standards of internet freedom. These are very modest proposals, that if adopted would have allowed Google to demonstrate that it understands that a totalitarian internet is evil, and that Google will not be evil.

The Google guys got very, very rich because they delivered a search technology able to freely roam an uncensored, wide-open internet. Yet in China, Google is a partner with one of the world’s most repressive regimes. Google even engages in self censorship of its search results –censoring results on “democracy”, "human rights" and, you guessed it, "censorship".

If Google won’t take the pledge, isn’t it time to find – or build -- a search engine that does not make such ugly compromises with oppressive regimes?

George Frost is a partner and General Counsel at CivicActions.