Yahoo settles jailed Chinese journalists suit

updated 12:33 p.m. ET Nov. 13, 2007

Yahoo Inc. on Tuesday settled a lawsuit with two Chinese journalists who were jailed after the company provided Chinese authorities with information about their online activities.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The two journalists and a family member sued the Sunnyvale-based company earlier this year after Yahoo HK, Yahoo's wholly owned subsidiary based in Hong Kong, gave Chinese authorities e-mails containing pro-democracy literature. The jailed journalists alleged in the lawsuit that jailers have tortured them and that Yahoo was responsible.

The company has denied any responsibility and maintained it was complying with Chinese law when it turned over the e-mails.

The case has raised questions about whether Internet companies should cooperate with governments that deny freedom of speech and frequently crack down on journalists.

It also has been the subject of U.S. congressional hearings, where lawmakers accused the company of collaborating with an oppressive communist regime.

Neither side disclosed terms other than to agree that Yahoo would pay the attorneys fees of the two journalists and the family member who sued.

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