MicrostockGroup
Agency Based Discussion => Shutterstock.com => Topic started by: Jo Ann Snover on December 12, 2019, 12:00
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I had no idea that Shutterstock had done this - I guess as they struggle with growth and profits, the lure of a huge market proves irresistible:
https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/08/in-wake-of-shutterstocks-chinese-censorship-american-companies-need-to-relearn-american-values/ (https://techcrunch.com/2019/12/08/in-wake-of-shutterstocks-chinese-censorship-american-companies-need-to-relearn-american-values/)
https://theintercept.com/2019/11/06/shutterstock-china-censorship-tech/ (https://theintercept.com/2019/11/06/shutterstock-china-censorship-tech/)
From the Intercept article, a summary:
"But in China, there is now a very small, very significant gap in Shutterstock’s offerings. In early September, Shutterstock engineers were given a new goal: The creation of a search blacklist that would wipe from query results images associated with keywords forbidden by the Chinese government. Under the new system, which The Intercept is told went into effect last month, anyone with a mainland Chinese IP address searching Shutterstock for “President Xi,” “Chairman Mao,” “Taiwan flag,” “dictator,” “yellow umbrella,” or “Chinese flag” will receive no results at all. Variations of these terms, including “umbrella movement” — the precursor to the mass pro-democracy protests currently gripping Hong Kong — are also banned."
https://www.pcmag.com/news/372420/shutterstocks-image-censoring-in-china-sparks-employee-to-r (https://www.pcmag.com/news/372420/shutterstocks-image-censoring-in-china-sparks-employee-to-r)
https://screenrant.com/shutterstock-censors-search-china/ (https://screenrant.com/shutterstock-censors-search-china/)
https://www.insider.com/shutterstock-admits-to-creating-chinese-censorship-tool-2019-11 (https://www.insider.com/shutterstock-admits-to-creating-chinese-censorship-tool-2019-11)
https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/3036754/shutterstock-censors-sensitive-search-terms-china (https://www.scmp.com/tech/article/3036754/shutterstock-censors-sensitive-search-terms-china)
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No real surprise there, although I am surprised at some of the terms that are banned. Chinese flag? how about Winnie the Pooh? I think that is usually banned.
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Why bite the hand that feeds you? Yes I know China is an evil dictatorship. I would not want to live there. But it is seemingly a well managed dictatorship, as long as you are han Chinese your lives have gotten better over the decades. If you are Muslim, well that is just really unfortunate, open air concentration camps and all. Which comes back to why bite the hand that feeds you, I was reading about how pretty much all the muslim governments around the world keeps their mouth shut about China's repression of its Muslim minority, they don't want to bite the hands that feed them. China is too important to them economically. I read that a few years ago Turkey's president said something about China's treatment of its Muslims and then China let Turkey know how displeased they were by Turkey's comment and Turkey has never brought it back up again.
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Why bite the hand that feeds you? Yes I know China is an evil dictatorship. I would not want to live there. But it is seemingly a well managed dictatorship, as long as you are han Chinese your lives have gotten better over the decades. If you are Muslim, well that is just really unfortunate, open air concentration camps and all. Which comes back to why bite the hand that feeds you, I was reading about how pretty much all the muslim governments around the world keeps their mouth shut about China's repression of its Muslim minority, they don't want to bite the hands that feed them. China is too important to them economically. I read that a few years ago Turkey's president said something about China's treatment of its Muslims and then China let Turkey know how displeased they were by Turkey's comment and Turkey has never brought it back up again.
Farming humans for organ transplants is a bit beyond the pale for me.
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Why bite the hand that feeds you? Yes I know China is an evil dictatorship. I would not want to live there. But it is seemingly a well managed dictatorship, as long as you are han Chinese your lives have gotten better over the decades. If you are Muslim, well that is just really unfortunate, open air concentration camps and all. Which comes back to why bite the hand that feeds you, I was reading about how pretty much all the muslim governments around the world keeps their mouth shut about China's repression of its Muslim minority, they don't want to bite the hands that feed them. China is too important to them economically. I read that a few years ago Turkey's president said something about China's treatment of its Muslims and then China let Turkey know how displeased they were by Turkey's comment and Turkey has never brought it back up again.
In the 1930's some people also said similar things about Germany under Adolf Hitler.
And Mussolini's fascist Italy there was the usual comments about the trains running on time amongst others on how well managed things were.
Western countries don't give a sh*t about human rights just so long as they can get their latest phones on the cheap.