Media Fun for the Day

Gosh, I'd sure like to blog about something other than politics, but it seems the papers are full of that...a reader sent me this link to the Taiwan News report of the China Times' apology for barefaced lying misconstruing DPP Chairman Yu's comments on the faux protests in Taipei:

One day after governing Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Yu Shyi-kun declared legal war against the China Times editor in chief and two reporters, the Chinese-language paper published an apology to Yu and its readers in yesterday's issue, admitting that it had made a mistake.

"Although DPP Chairman Yu Shyi-kun has recently made certain remarks that sparked public concern of escalating ethnic tensions, including that 'the depose Chen movement was Chinese people bullying Taiwanese people,' the paper has verified that Yu did not use the term "Chinese pigs" as was reported in our front page story on September 25. We therefore offer an apology to Chairman Yu and our readers," the statement read.

The story in question stated that Yu's "provocative use of the term "Chinese pigs" to refer to anti-Chen protesters had given rise to criticism from within his own party. Yu, who was in Taichung yesterday, did not make any immediate comments in response to the China Times' apology. However, one of his aides, DPP Deputy Secretary-General Tsai Huang-liang (蔡煌瑯), said that the chairman would discuss the matter with his lawyers before making a decision on whether to withdraw the lawsuit against the China Times.

Yu, who twice denied making the comment, filed a libel suit Monday against the two China Times reporters whose bylines appeared on the story and the paper's editor in chief Wang Chien-chuang.

"I will sue them no matter what happens!" any angry Yu declared at DPP news conference Monday morning. "The China Times has gone too far! It has lost its journalistic ethics."

In the lawsuit, Yu demanded that the mass circulation daily publish a written apology on its front page, the same page on which it ran the report under a banner headline Monday.

After the furor erupted, cable station TVBS-N reviewed its tapes of Yu's public remarks over the past two weeks and was able to determine that Yu did not use the term "Chinese pigs" as was reported.

Meanwhile, I've taken a look at another awful piece on the protests in the foreign media, this one in the Economist, over at Taiwan Matters. Taiwan News also has a good editorial on the feckless Ma Ying-jeou:

When former Taitung County commissioner Wu Chun-li removed from office due to conviction on bribery charges and his "divorced" wife Kuang Li-chen represented him to run for the subsequent by-election for the same post, Ma declared that Wu's spouse "should not bear the crime of her husband."

But when first lady Wu Shu-jen was alleged to have received vouchers from the SOGO Department Store and her son-in-law was charged with insides trading, Ma insisted that President Chen was "morally" responsible and should resign regardless of whether he was directly implicated in any wrongdoing.

Good old Ma. You know, Su's going to beat him in 2008....buried in the business news is this tidbit:

Taiwan's shares rose slightly Wednesday, led by construction and property firms after the Taipei city government decided to open up more land for development.

The Weighted Price Index of the Taiwan Stock Exchange rose 44.52 points, or 0.7 percent, to 6,946.27.

"The city government's move will increase land supply and reduce costs for developers," said Daiwa Securities SMBC-Cathay trader David Li.

The construction sector rose 2.8 percent, outperforming other subindexes.

James Soong, Chairman of the PFP, and possible candidate for mayor of Taipei, has been running around promising to open up more land to development in Taipei if elected. Has someone pre-empted him?


[Taiwan]