patrick.net

It was in this hectic environment that Jones says it happened. While logged into an official Marriott Twitter account, he believes he probably — and accidentally — clicked “like” on a pro-Tibetan tweet thanking Marriott for listing Tibet as its own country, and not a part of China, on a survey. ...

Roy and no one else noticed that error that night. But a short 24 hours later, he and a lot of Marriott employees were most definitely aware.

Pro-Chinese forces were incensed that Tibet was listed as its own country on the Marriott survey. China has long made legal claim to the region and has controlled it since 1950.

Dozens of social media accounts were tweeting angry things, including many death threats, at both Roy and Marriott. This seems especially odd considering Twitter itself is officially banned in China, and thus can be accessed only by residents breaking the law or by bot accounts.

That same day, a top official in the hotel chain’s human resources department boarded a flight to Omaha, traveling here, Roy says, to fire him.

At this point, you might wonder: Why is this such a big deal?

Good question. Chinese anger is a huge deal to companies like Marriott because China is both a gigantic customer and a notoriously difficult business partner.