International Law

New York Times Removes Negative Quotations from Article on Google and Baidu

I write this to satisfy the curiousity of those who may not see a quotation referenced in an Asiabizblog post.

The New York Times has removed or revised two quotations from an article it published on January 13, originally titled, "China's Exit Threatens China's Internet," by David Barboza, et al. The revised article, running at the same URL as the original, is entitled, "Baidu?s Gain from Departure Could Be China?s Loss." Among the quotations removed is that of Anne Stevenson Yang, whom I quoted in yesterday's post. (See post below.) Yes, that quote was there and is now gone. Along with this one: "It's the epitaph for US online involvement here."

In addition, the following quote from the original story was partially revised.

?Baidu keeps a great relationship with the government,? says Hong Bo, a consultant at 5G, a Beijing-based consulting firm. ?If the government wants something removed it will do it immediately. On the other hand, everything with Google has to go through its headquarters.?

The revised article curiously allows the writer to ventriloquize the first sentence:

Baidu?s strong relationship with the government contributed to its rise. ?If the government wants something removed, it will do it immediately,? said Hong Bo, a consultant with 5G, a Beijing consultancy. ?On the other hand, everything with Google has to go through its headquarters.?

Other than these changes, the articles appear similar. So, why were any changes made? Why were quotes dropped?

[H/T to a friend.]

Full post as published by Asia Business Intelligence on January 14, 2010 (boomark / email).