Netflix CEO Reed Hastings gave a full-throated defense of the company’s decision to remove an episode of the show "Patriot Act With Hasan Minhaj" from its platform in Saudi Arabia after a complaint from the Saudi government about Minhaj's criticisms of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Why it matters: It’s another example of corporations attempting to walk the fine line of upholding values like free speech while also trying not to offend foreign governments that could put business at risk.
- Most recently, the NBA apologized to Chinese fans for a tweet by Houston Rockets' general manager Daryl Morey that expressed support for the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.
- Back in 2017, Snap removed Al Jazeera from its "Discover" news platform in Saudi Arabia after the government said the news organization "violated its media and cybercrime laws," per NBC News.
Of note: Earlier this year, Netflix told the New York Times: "We strongly support artistic freedom worldwide and only removed this episode in Saudi Arabia after we had received a valid legal request — and to comply with local law.”
The bottom line: Speaking at Web Summit in Lisbon, Edelman CEO Richard Edelman said that companies need to be global but locally minded and understand what rules exist in certain places to operate.
- Yes, but: As companies depend more on international markets for growth, that might sometimes come at the expense of values that the same companies have touted in the U.S.
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