American Human Flesh Search Engine PK Chinese Human Flesh Search Engine - Age1983

The phenomenon known as "human flesh search" has been rampant on China's internet for nearly two years. A search for "Flesh Search Engine" or "Human flesh hunting" on google.com reveals that over 99% of reports containing these keywords come from Chinese websites. Related reports from American online media are few and far between, and without exception trace their origins back to China, referring to it as the literal translation of the Chinese term "人肉搜索." It is only then that you realize: "human flesh search" is indeed a genuine Chinese creation, a remarkable invention by the Chinese in the Internet era!

Given this, China naturally holds the ultimate interpretive authority over human flesh searches. Baidu Baike defines it as follows: "A human flesh search uses modern information technology to transform traditional online information searches into relationship-based network community activities where people seek people, ask people, bump into people, crowd around people, and stand next to people. It turns the dull and monotonous search process into a 'one question posed, eight responses given, one stone causing a thousand ripples, one call awakening ten thousand sincere hearts' kind of humanized search experience." Furthermore, "a human flesh search engine refers to a mechanism that relies more on human participation to purify the information provided by search engines." These definitions sound gentle and refined, but in reality, most people's understanding of this term stems from well-known destructive cases like the cat torture incident and the Wang Qianyuan event—a series of typical human flesh search incidents with destructive consequences. The American online media also invariably refer to this type of case when they talk about human flesh searches. What I will explore next is precisely this narrow definition of human flesh search behavior conducted by netizens referred to as "volunteer police" by CNN.

At present, such behavior is flourishing in China, occurring one after another. However, in the United States, where the Internet is highly developed, similar cases are extremely rare. After thorough research, I could only find two examples: the plagiarism incident involving a female college student and the unmarried pregnancy of Sarah Palin's daughter.

The former took place in 2005. A female American college student named Paula offered $75 online to hire someone to write her paper. The person she was negotiating with was actually a comedy writer and blogger who detested plagiarism. He pretended to be the hired writer and engaged Paula in an online conversation, later publishing the entire dialogue publicly. Not only that, he disclosed Paula’s private information, leading to a barrage of angry emails and phone calls from bloggers, even demanding that her school expel her. Although the cause of this incident seemed justified, the "vigilante blogger" faced more public pressure in the end. Many Americans expressed that while Paula's plagiarism was despicable, the punishment she received far exceeded her offense and could ruin her life. As a result, people generally believed that the blogger's actions were too extreme and lacked fairness.

The other so-called human flesh search incident happened during the recent U.S. presidential election. When Democratic vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin unexpectedly captured national attention with her gender and unique life experiences, her personal privacy became a target for public scrutiny. Among these, the scandal of her 17-year-old high school daughter being pregnant out of wedlock came under the spotlight first. Based on a few clues provided by Palin, American netizens even uncovered the Facebook photo and self-description of the "culprit" boy. On a larger scale, this was an act by American netizens, motivated by concerns about the country's future, to spontaneously review the candidates, not truly a "volunteer police"-style human flesh search incident.

From this, you can see that human flesh searches have no market in the United States. This contrasts sharply with its widespread popularity in China. The reasons for this phenomenon can roughly be attributed to the following points: First, the American media industry is pervasive and operates efficiently, ensuring that most newsworthy events receive media attention almost immediately, thus eliminating the need for netizens to fill gaps. Second, in the absence of China's Animal Protection Law, those involved in the cat torture incident could escape legal consequences and remain unpunished, receiving at most moral condemnation. In contrast, similar behavior in the United States would face legal punishment. Therefore, with the omnipresent law acting as an effective monitor, there is no need for people to punish evil and promote good through human flesh searches. Finally, American society places great emphasis on personal privacy.