Facebook won’t operate in China until there is ‘free expression’

Image: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

That’s a thumbs down on China.

In a letter to Congress, Facebook said that it would only provide service in China if it was free from government censorship. In other words, as Xi Jinping’s power over the country intensifies, that’s not likely.

Specifically, Facebook would need to ensure that providing its service would enable “free expression,” and not have undue “privacy implications” — that is, government surveillance and censorship.

“Rigorous human rights due diligence and careful consideration of free expression and privacy implications would constitute important components of any decision on entering China,” the letter reads. “Facebook has been blocked in China since 2009, and no decisions have been made around the conditions under which any possible future service might be offered in China.”

Facebook’s stance comes in opposition to recent actions by Google. CEO Sundar Pichai confirmed the existence of a Google search engine for China, nicknamed Project Dragonfly. Google previously pulled business from China in 2010 when it decided that the required censorship it would enable was inconsistent with the company’s values. Now, Pichai says that the Chinese search engine will be able to serve 99 percent of queries.

But what does that 1 percent contain? What is censored and what is allowed is an opaque differentiation, decided upon by the government. In a 2017 assessment of the state of censorship in China, the Council on Foreign Relations writes that censorship is still very much a part of government and culture — but that the internet is testing its bounds. 

China’s constitution affords its citizens freedom of speech and press, but the opacity of Chinese media regulations allows authorities to crack down on news stories by claiming that they expose state secrets and endanger the country. The definition of state secrets in China remains vague, facilitating censorship of any information that authorities deem harmful [PDF] to their political or economic interests. CFR Senior Fellow Elizabeth C. Economy says the Chinese government is in a state of “schizophrenia” about media policy as it “goes back and forth, testing the line, knowing they need press freedom and the information it provides, but worried about opening the door to the type of freedoms that could lead to the regime’s downfall.”

Apparently, China’s muddy censorship policy is enough to keep Facebook out.

Facebook says that its decision to stay out of China is rooted in two things: the company’s values, and its membership within the digital rights consortium, Global Network Initiative (GNI). GNI sets standards for free expression and privacy, which Facebook says it adheres to.

Facebook does not know how China would apply its censorship laws. And it won’t offer Facebook in China until it has clarity on that point.

But as Bloomberg points out, Facebook still does some business in China. Bloomberg says sales representatives help Chinese businesses reach people on Facebook with ads. 

Google was unable to put principles over profits when it decided to make search available in China. For now, Facebook, it seems, is erring on the side of the values they so love to espouse.

That, and they’re avoiding getting into even more hot water with Congress.