Digital Search Disruption and Corporate Governance: Evidence From Google's Withdrawal and Executive Gender Diversity in China

ABSTRACT Research Question/Issue This study examines whether disruptions to digital information infrastructure influence corporate governance outcomes. Specifically, it investigates how Google's 2010 withdrawal from mainland China affected executive gender diversity by altering firms' external visibility within global information networks. Research Findings/Insights Using a difference‐in‐differences framework, the study finds that firms with greater prewithdrawal exposure to Google experienced a significant decline in executive gender diversity after the withdrawal. The results remain robust across alternative specifications and identification tests. Mechanism analyses suggest that reductions in foreign media visibility and weakened foreign investor monitoring are important channels, which reduce external governance pressures. Further analyses reveal that the effect is stronger in regions with less supportive gender‐norm environments and greater information‐accessibility constraints, with gender norms showing a more robust moderating role. Theoretical/Academic Implications This study extends corporate governance research by identifying digital information infrastructure as an important governance‐relevant information intermediary. The findings broaden existing perspectives beyond traditional disclosure and monitoring mechanisms by showing that governance outcomes are also shaped by the infrastructures that determine firms' visibility and accessibility to external stakeholders. The study further demonstrates that executive gender diversity responds not only to internal organizational choices but also to changes in firms' external informational environments. Practitioner/Policy Implications The findings highlight the importance of maintaining reliable and accessible digital information infrastructures that support external accountability mechanisms. Firms should treat digital visibility as a strategic governance resource and develop diversified channels to maintain stakeholder connections when key information infrastructures are disrupted.