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Who Faked Story about Cardboard in Chinese Rolls? The Reporter or the Government?
Last week we posted a story from China in which an undercover reporter filmed workers in a Beijing suburb making rolls out of chopped up cardboard.
China is now saying the story was faked and the reporter has been jailed and, according to the 'The Beijing Public Security Bureau, will be "severely dealt with according to law.''
Chinese officials claim that the reporter was under pressure from his editors to come up with a story. He wasn't able to do so, and in desperation, hired a couple of workers to chop up cardboard on camera, mix it with pork, and steam it into popular baozi rolls. The footage, which was broadcast on Beijing Television's Life Channel on July 8 and then spread globally, created disgust worldwide. You can check it out for yourself here.
Speculation has arisen, however, regarding who actually filed the false report. China recently has been facing charges from the global community regarding the poor quality of its exports. An internal investigation revealing cardboard as the main ingredient in a consumable product has only furthered these accusations and caused even more embarrassment and damage.
It is therefore, entirely within the realm of reason for Chinese officials to claim the story was fabricated and jail the reporter to protect the image of Chinese products.
In my opinion, this is exactly what happened.
Filed under: Food and Drink, China
Reader Comments (Page 5 of 5)
RWK Jul 28th 2007 2:58PM
That does'nt sound like Chinese. It sounds more like Japanese.
RWK
modelofiron Jul 28th 2007 3:05PM
Talk about doing anything for a story! sheesh
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gypsyblueyes Jul 28th 2007 3:46PM
Well, I have one that beats all-
I was watching a science and invention show years ago and it had an inventor who had enabled the production of Tofu from human excrement to help fend off world hunger.
"Would you like more tofu in your stir fry, dear?"
Bringing new meaning to-\\\ Jul 28th 2007 3:49PM
P.S. Gives a whole new meaning to "pass the tofu", huh?
kariebabi Jul 29th 2007 12:15AM
I've got to agree with #13, Jimmy...the grammar, spelling, and punctuation in these posts is so bad..no wonder all our business went overseas!! Duh.
kariebabi Jul 29th 2007 12:23AM
oh ..about McDonalds...a buddy of mine used to slaughter cows..diseased and disabled cows...they sold all of them to McDonalds and Taco Bells across the USA
Bent McElroy Jul 29th 2007 5:18PM
And I was wondering why that fajita gave me a hard time.......
Seriously, this is story is ultimately about product versus profit isn't it? This is a universal issue that has its very own word in the english language: GREED
Just this past month, an empty lot just three houses down had sold, and the new owner saw fit to give it a new house. Before the lot sold, it was a hillside where rainwater runoff from the other houses collected. It reminds me of the Monty Python & Holy Grail movie: "Other kings said I was daft to build a castle in the swamp. But I built it all the same, just to show 'em. (small pause here) It sank into the swamp, so, I built a second one... which sank into the swamp..." Anyway, the house literally is built on a swamp and the siding was put up directly on top of the splinterwood walls (NO INSULATION). I know this because I was there that day. I witnessed it happen. $159,900 and the house isn't even that big! GREED
It's obvious that an overnight fix would be nice, but it can't happen that way, it takes time, the average American is way too stubborn. Buying a product that says "Made in America" is pretty much a crapshoot in itself these days, as you will find the box says "Made in America" because the box really was made in America, and the product in it was made elsewhere.
Here's an idea that may or may not work, follow me on this now, how proud is Great Britian of their country and their work? What are the odds a label that says "made in Great Britian" is not really made in Great Britian like the USA label is here? We already like being in vogue as Americans, keep in mind, the original reason people bought foreign way back when was because of the notariety one received from having something unusual and fresh, rather than, being a "square" and driving a "Buick". That being said, what are the odds we can start buying the good foreign stuff instead of the cheap foreign stuff? Let's face it, the British are on much better terms with us now, and of all the countries on the planet are the most likely to understand our standards and customs. If not GB, how about Australia? We already have a restaurant chain that fantasizes about the relation (Outback). We even chatter on about actors and actresses from that country every day for various reasons... Gibson and Kidman, just to name a couple... Think about it! Correct me if I am wrong but, Japan is an island- China is part of a continent. GB is partly and island, Australia is a continent. See the similarites? I'd be more than willing to drive around in a British car eating Australian food, or even an Aussie car eating British food. You may say, way too expensive... News flash- it's expensive right now because the volume of their exports is not high enough to maintain a serious profit at the lower price that we are paying for with lower quality right now. If the volume becomes high enough the price will fall. Think about it, 25 years ago, how many people could afford a cell phone? 30 years ago, wasn't keeping up with the Jones's about having fine CHINA in your kitchen to eat of off when you had the neighbor's over for dinner? Wasn't it the best in the world to have silverware sets (or at least the knives) made in Japan? See?
We need to show our "American" companies and the foreign crapshooters on the other side of the world that we will no longer tolerate the problems their carelessness, ineptitude and unethical greed. They need to know and I mean KNOW that quality expectations and cleanliness have come a long way since the Ming Dynasty....
Don't buy based on country of origin, buy based on quality- your body and family will thank you.
Matthew Aug 2nd 2007 8:13PM
Boy there sure is a lot of cheap talk about importing cheap crap from China and other countries...but I don't see any action to counter the direction we are headed...like being willing to pay more for american made products...lets boycot Wal-Mart...they are the ones driving all the manufacturing over seas...or maybe we can start a network of people to turn the boat around...after all we are those incredible and inventive "Americans"...are we going to go quietly into the night??? or are we going to pull our head out of our ass and help our other countrymen pull theirs out and turn things around????????? feel free to email me at mscott3@cox.net