What about the world today demonstrates most obviously the need for intercultural communication? Be
January 31, 2026Theories Of Aging Summary | myclassassignment.com
January 31, 2026YAHOO! I N CHINA: IS THERE E-MA I L PRIVACY I N GLOBAL MARKETS?
Yahoo! has come under criticism by human rights groups who allege that the company has helped the Chinese government identify at least four people, including journalist Shi Tao, who have voiced dissent. Shi Tao, a reporter and editor for a Chinese newspaper, claims Yahoo! helped the Chinese government, causing him to be jailed for a decade. In August 2007, the U.S. Congress began investigating Yahoo!’s role in passing sensitive information to the Chinese authorities. Police in Beijing arrested Tao after Yahoo! provided information about his e-mail account, his Internet Protocol (IP) address, log-on history, and the contents of his e-mails. Yahoo!’s vice president and general counsel admits that the company gave the details to the Chinese authorities but said they did not know why they wanted this information. Another Yahoo! spokesman said that companies doing business in China have no choice but to comply with Chinese law and that they do not know the information may be used to punish political dissidents. Also in 2007, another Chinese political prisoner, Wang Xiaoning, and his wife, filed suit against Yahoo! under the Alien Tort Claims Act and the Torture Victims Protection Act, claiming the company helped turn him in and that it led to physical beatings and a 10-year prison sentence. In the suit, Mr. Wang admitted that he was distributing online journal articles calling for democratic reforms and a multiparty system in China. He did this anonymously by posting the articles in a Yahoo! Group. He claims Yahoo! HK, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yahoo!, provided the police information linking him to the postings. Yahoo! HK denies the charges. Yahoo!, along with Google, Microsoft, and Cisco, argue that issues of human rights and censorship in China are too great for them to handle alone, and they have appealed to the U.S. government to take a leadership role in this issue.
1. Has Yahoo! violated the privacy rights of these Chinese dissidents? What e-mail privacy protection could they reasonably expect from Yahoo!?
2. Does Yahoo! have a responsibility in global markets to go extra lengths to protect e-mail privacy?
3. Should the U.S. government, or any government, take a leadership role in cases like this? If so, what should they do?