MS Bing Sparks Outrage by Referring to Dokdo as ‘Takeshima – An Island in the Sea of Japan’

Following the Russian internet encyclopedia Ruwiki’s introduction of Dokdo as a territorial dispute between Korea and Japan, controversy arose as Microsoft search engine “Bing” introduced Dokdo as a “Japanese island, Takeshima,” etc.

Professor Seo Kyung Duk of Sungshin Women’s University said through social networking service (SNS) on the 21st, “When you search for ‘Dokdo’ in English in the United States, ‘Liancourt Rocks’ comes out as the main, and in the description, this introduces it as ‘Japanese island.'”

The Japanese government often uses “Liancourt Rocks,” named after the French whaling ship Liancourt that discovered Dokdo, to deny Korea’s sovereignty over Dokdo.

Professor Seo also explained, “When you search for ‘Dokdo’ in English in Japan, ‘Takeshima’ (the name of Dokdo claimed by Japan) comes out as the main, and the description part introduces it as ‘an island in the Sea of Japan that is in dispute between Korea and Japan.'”

He added, “Dokdo is Korean territory historically, geographically, and in terms of international laws, so it is not a dispute or conflict area with Japan.”

Unlike the United States and Japan, if you search for “Dokdo” in English using MS Bing in Korea, “Dokdo” comes out in Korean, and the description part introduces it as “reef in the East Sea.”