https://www.forbes.com/sites/zacharyfolk/2023/12/20/russia-claims-google-hosts-extremist-lgbtq-content-levies-50-million-fine/
Google faces more fines from Russia after the country banned the LGBTQ organizations in November amid a larger targeting of gay activists.
No.
https://www.techradar.com/news/google-is-officially-leaving-russia
https://www.wsj.com/articles/google-subsidiary-in-russia-to-file-for-bankruptcy-11652876597
Also trying to continue brainwashing their viewers and portraying themselves as the strong man.
Except there's no way they'll actually get any money out of this and they know as much. It's just the same old tired posturing to do whataboutism about extremist content
I don't think anyone here is defending Google in all of their policies. We're all just laughing at the impotent dictator who thinks he can make a quick $50 million and win the hearts of bigots at the same time.
What a bunch of pansy dumb fucks. Poor Russia's gonna cry because Google is paying attention to markets that actually matter.
You mean markets that fall for marketing. Google is an advertising company. They don't care about the LGBT communities, they care about money. Never forget that. The LGBT support is just a byproduct of what they've decided is going to make them the most money.
Manager and community member at a FAANG here. That’s frequently said, and it is certainly partly true. However, there’s a couple of other factors that also play into it.
First, yes, companies are aware that they are a brand, and maintaining their brand is a big deal. Diversity and inclusion are huge as parts of their brand identity. It’s what customers expect.
Second, though, is the employees. Coors was and remains a right wing company politically. However, they were also among the first companies in the US to extend married couple benefits to same sex partner households due to employee pressure. It’s not just the LGBT customers, it’s the employees (current and future) that push for companies to take public positions on the issues as well as make resources available internally.
Third, there are community members and allies throughout leadership as well as management and staff. They are the ones to make these kinds of calls.
I’ll be the first to call a company like Target out for rainbow washing, but it usually flows pretty smoothly. As someone who grew up in a very different America, I will take what we can get - especially these days.
So what you are saying is that a formerly marginalized community is slightly less marginalized?
You can talk about other aspects of Google and their stance as related to advertising, but they have always been LGBT friendly from day 1. Both the employees and company as a whole. They released this 13 years ago: https://youtu.be/pYLs4NCgvNU?si=5NizEf8XAf8CPyBs
I've worked at a big tech company. I can all but guarantee there are some firey memes posted amongst colleagues about this situation. Unfortunately, they're unlikely to ever become public.
