Is the China Google block a false alarm?

Several news outlets are currently reporting that Google web search has been fully blocked in mainland China. And indeed the company’s website is reporting that search is blocked. However, actually Chinese web users don’t seem to be having a problem. Blogger Rebecca MacKinnon is currently following the story on Twitter and retweeting reports from throughout ...

By , a former associate editor at Foreign Policy.

Several news outlets are currently reporting that Google web search has been fully blocked in mainland China. And indeed the company's website is reporting that search is blocked. However, actually Chinese web users don't seem to be having a problem. Blogger Rebecca MacKinnon is currently following the story on Twitter and retweeting reports from throughout China. So far, no one seems to be reporting any problems. 

Several news outlets are currently reporting that Google web search has been fully blocked in mainland China. And indeed the company’s website is reporting that search is blocked. However, actually Chinese web users don’t seem to be having a problem. Blogger Rebecca MacKinnon is currently following the story on Twitter and retweeting reports from throughout China. So far, no one seems to be reporting any problems. 

According to Reuters, "Shares of Google were down 1.4 percent in after-hours trading to $478.00, while shares of Baidu Inc, the biggest search provider in China, rose 3.5 percent," so it would be unfortunate if this were just a screw-up. Stay tuned.  

Joshua Keating was an associate editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @joshuakeating

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