From CNET: Tom Lantos, the Democratic congressman and Holocaust survivor who used his moral authority to pressure Yahoo and other American Internet companies about their behavior in China, has died. Lantos famously --and perhaps a bit unfairly-- referred to Yahoo CEO Jerry Yang and General Counsel Michael Callahan as "moral pygmies" in the most recent round of hearings. He also demonstrated his mastery of PR by using imprisoned journalist Shi Tao's mother as a prop in the hearings.

I didn't agree completely with Lantos position or rhetoric (Imagethief feels that it is valuable for US and other foreign Internet companies to operate in China) but I do think it was valuable to have someone in the US government forcing US Internet companies to think about the consequences of their actions here. His colleague, Rep. Chris Smith, will presumably carry the torch for this issue. But Smith doesn't have Lantos' moral heft.

Whatever happens, the issue won't die with Lantos.

Previously on Imagethief: