China's sense of humor

Editor's note: "Jaime's China" is a weekly column on China's social and political. Haimeijimi since 1971, living and working in China. Peking University (1977-1981), he studied Chinese history and Time magazine reporter and editor-in-chief in Beijing (1982-2000).

Beijing (CNN) - known as China's state-run People's Daily political correctness, rather than a sense of humor.

So, when a report surfaced this week, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, has been named the 2012 "Sexiest Man Alive" the Korean comrades cheering from the mouthpiece of the Communist Party of China on its website - just this "news" from satirical U.S. website, onions.

China is North Korea's main ally and aid provider. Report flattering gold must be considered to be politically correct. Editing of the website and even create a gallery of photos to accompany the report, the slide gold riding a horse, check the forces and embrace the female soldiers.

Although the project the the usually sedate spiced web site, it led to a wave a snicker international media ridicule be fooled by the Chinese state-run media from the famous disseminators of false reports of the kind of humor and satire.

Read: onion: We just fool the Chinese government!

The People's Daily omniscient really so gullible, or is it the work of a like irony mischievous insider?
China belongs to the "onion" JAB
Sorry China, Kim Jong Un, is not 'sexy'

On Wednesday, a woman who we call the site office in Beijing insists that this is the People's Daily "impossible to quote from any unreliable media - we verify our news sources."

The woman, who declined to disclose the identity, said the story and pictures have been removed a day after the release.

However, the damage has been done, onion taste of publicity.

"Please visit our friends in the People's Daily in China, a proud communist subsidiary of onions," read its statement. "Model reportage, comrades."

Chinese micro-blog can not resist behavior too.

"The world is fooled by the People's Daily, the Chinese people believe that this kind of paper, wrote:": @ Hai_Dao_Wu_Bian.

Therefore, the Chinese people have a sense of humor?

Christopher intentions, who wrote a humor in the cultural history of modern China, said China has a strong sense of farce and absurd, and a keen appreciation of watching those in power screw up. '

Intent, the center of China in the world of scholars in Australia said, "the same sense of humor running the gamut of China, as elsewhere."

Linda Jaivin, a veteran China watchers and co-author of the new ghost dreams, "a book of Chinese literature and culture, said Beijingers sense of humor is often" very concerned about the political and irony. "

The sudden appearance of a giant statue of Confucius in Tiananmen Square, not far from the iconic portrait of Mao Zedong as early as last tongue shook all marked the political - Confucius expulsion of Mao Zedong as the spiritual leader of China?

Square, the statue was moved, like suddenly a few weeks later, prompting some politicians joked venerated saints, known from rural Shandong, Beijing residence permit cracked.
- Not just China - all reporters should learn from the lesson is the need to verify all information before publishing.
Richard Hall, Nick

Centuries has been a political satire humor staple, still in the communist era.

In the 1980s, when the first signs of official corruption on economic reform began, the the humor clever rise of minor:

"I was a high official, so I eat and drink, to eat and drink ..."

"This is not my money, after all, we have spent, so eat and joy, we have a ball!"

Today, the Chinese writers, artists, cartoonists, comedians, and Internet users to take the humor and irony, ridicule, question, challenge, and document social phenomenon, incidents and accidents.

Humor pun-based, may have been a lot said: "Jaivin, speak fluent Chinese. "Chinese language is very rich homophone mature homonym.

It can be lost in translation, but some do not overcome the restrictions on any languages.

When some Beijing residents nickname Koolhaus designed the new office complex of the CCTV, China's flagship television network, "big pants" (pants), underwear similarity, the government is trying to give it a better sounding name.

Recalled: "Therefore, they attempt to" hemorrhoids "- knowledge of the window, Jaivin. Attractive, but worse, because the as Beijing funsters work, in about a microsecond, it is hemorrhoids homonym.

China's sense of humor has become more globalized, Calabria said, citing "E'gao phenomenon began in 2005, is still very popular, especially in skilled youth on the Internet deception and imitation.

International influence, it has attracted a strong image, sound and text for video mash-ups, "he said.

So, if the humor is so strong, why people editing daily fall for it?

"Perhaps because of the lack of a good many Chinese news editors and reporters and knowledge of the English language, making it difficult for them to find irony," recommended that graduate in journalism. "Maybe because there are so many fake news, they do not have the ability to distinguish between real fake news."

REA accused of copying foreign news media everywhere in the official Chinese news media, the combination of poor quality control or fact checking. "

A serious lesson?

"- Not just China - all reporters should learn from the lesson is the need to verify all information before release, said:" Richard Holl Nick, a lecturer in journalism at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, once covered in China Time "magazine.

"Facebook and Twitter microblogging, new media, so that we all publishers in the digital age, all responsible citizens should verify before they released the information," like "or retweet.

How embarrassing the People's Daily it?

"Quipped:" Very Jaivin. "That said, I do not want anyone to be sent to a labor camp too."