CNN Still On China's Blacklist Over Cafferty Comments As Olympics Near

New York Observer:

And before the games have even begun, the relationship between China and the Western press has become a story.

China's short-tempered and nationalistic online community sparked death threats this past spring against outlets whose coverage of the Lhasa riots was deemed slanted toward the Tibetans. CNN doubled its blacklist status when commentator Jack Cafferty called the Chinese "thugs and goons"--meaning the regime, he said afterward, too late to mollify the public.

Craig Simons, the Asia bureau chief for Cox Newspapers, said that a cab driver this month had asked him if he worked for CNN. Mr. Simons said he did not. The cabbie declared that he would have refused to carry him if he had. "We were on Second Ring Road, in heavy traffic, and he said he'd pull over right there and drop me on the shoulder," Mr. Simons wrote in an e-mail.

Under these conditions, status and etiquette begin to get slippery.

Read the whole story: New York Observer

Comments

[storeyy]

Senator Thad Cochran of Mississippi, a good friend of John McCains for more than 3 decades ---The thought of John McCain being president sends a cold chill down my spine," Cochran said about McCain by phone. "He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."

[andhakari]

“They told us, in the U.S. there’s no Great Wall, so there couldn’t be a U.S. Great Wall expert,” Mr. Hano said.

Ah, yes. Finally a society which which could use someone like Rove to liberalize their government and bring truth and understanding to their commentary.
They scare the hell out of me and make me glad the US has nuclear weapons.

[PurplePhase]

The more the Chinese protest, the more they validate Cafferty.

[trinity]

One can only hope that the Chinese citizens (those in their homeland as well as the ones living in the US) would boycott the US...may be the only way to put Walmart out of business.

[uheardme]

It's a bad idea to have the Games in communist China. They are bugging their foreign guests by tracking and screening their internet usage, Joey Cheek (a Darfur activist) had his visa revoked, hundreds of political activists jailed in advance of the Games, and God knows what else they've done to show the world the face of their unique brand of Communism/­Consumeris­m is the future. This whole exercise is bad news. You don't reward human rights abusers, you sanction, punish, and marginalize them.

[mamacat]

Its been awhile since CNN did anything newsworthy. I guess this counts.

It looks like the Chinese like to control their press, sort of like the White House likes to feed its stories through Faux News. Now imagine, if all we got to see was Faux News. We too would be as ill informed and bigoted as that taxi driver.

[dgscol]

Better watch out - China has the money to buy CNN, and make it the Chinese News Network.
Would Congress allow that?

[Meggie]

I guess you know the answer to that after the dubai ports deal. is there anything our government won't sell out, no matter what it ultimately means to the people?

[wdw101]

CNN is the communist news network right now so what would change?

[Ramirez]

The Chinese should move on. That level of rhetoric is routine on US political shows. And to be fair, Jack Cafferty hates everyone. Except 0bama. He's good with 0bama.

[robotfog]

so china's government is run by thugs and goons just like ours!

[terramartom]

Now that would actually be funny if it were not so true!

[mexamerican]

the chinese need to fack off already. this is the u.s. and you can still (at least for now) criticize whoever or whatever the hell you want to.

[dgscol]

Jack Cafferty for US ambassador!

[roncraw]

They should be like many Americans and consider him what he is a partisan loud mouth that he is.

[Ramirez]

He is a gasbag and a longtime BDS sufferer.

[uheardme]

He's more intelligent than your drug-addled limpdick golden microphone felating EIB host and Mr. Falafel.

[4wehttam]

Get over it!!!! Jack didn't do ANYTHING wrong.

[AmericaninProtest]

Jack Cafferty is one of the FEW journalist in television who has integrity, is unbiased, and honest. China is under communism and dictatorship. There is no freedom of speech.

He is the only reason I still watch CNN.

[Dustee]

I love Jack Cafferty!