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发帖数: 18403 | 1 【 以下文字转载自 CivilSociety 讨论区 】
发信人: judien (Now we are one!), 信区: CivilSociety
标 题: 商业周刊道明了Kimmel事件的出路 (转载)
发信站: BBS 未名空间站 (Wed Nov 13 12:25:05 2013, 美东)
发信人: hos (爱国· 爱家· 爱吃), 信区: Military
标 题: 商业周刊道明了Kimmel事件的出路
发信站: BBS 未名空间站 (Wed Nov 13 12:00:28 2013, 美东)
Disney Needs to Worry About the Jimmy Kimmel Controversy in China
By Bruce Einhorn
November 12, 2013 11:04 AM EST
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With big plans for China, the Walt Disney Co. can’t afford a long fight
over the now-infamous segment on Disney-owned ABC last month in which a
little blond-haired boy told Jimmy Kimmel that the U.S. should fix its
financial problems by killing all the people in China. Gee, don’t kids say
the darndest things? The comedian didn’t help matters by following up the
tot’s comment by asking the other children on the panel, “Should we allow
the Chinese to live?” Chinese-Americans are understandably upset and have
demanded apologies from Kimmel and ABC.
Now the Chinese government is getting in on the umbrage action, with a
spokesman yesterday calling on the network to “respond to the Chinese
community’s demand in a sincere way,” the official Xinhua news agency
reported. According to Xinhua, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang
added that “spreading racism and hatred goes against the media’s social
responsibility.”
In a worrisome sign for Disney, the call for an apology came after ABC had
indeed apologized. “Please accept our heartfelt, sincere apology,” the
network said in a Nov. 8 statement. Perhaps the Chinese Foreign Ministry
doubts the sincerity of the apology, with the sort of mistakes-were-made
passive construction your English teacher warned you never to use. “The
simple fact is, the segment should never have been broadcast,” ABC said,
adding: “steps have been made to try and prevent this kind of egregious
mistake from occurring in the future.”
The Chinese media are certainly skeptical. “An apology letter purportedly
written by Kimmel was posted on one of Xinhua’s officialSina Weibo
accounts on Monday,” the Global Times reported. (Emphasis added.) “In the
letter, written in Chinese, Kimmel said that he felt sorry and ‘it was not
his intention to offend anyone.’ “
If anti-ABC protests in the U.S. turn into anti-Disney protests in China,
the bad publicity could spoil the company’s plans to win over Chinese
consumers in time for the opening of its newest theme park, now under
construction in Shanghai. Scheduled to open in 2015, the resort will have
two hotels, as well as Shanghai Disneyland. The park will “blend classic
Disney storytelling and characters with all-new attractions and experiences
tailored specifically for the people of China,” Disney promises on its
website.
As part of the runup to the Shanghai park opening, Disney is also planning
the world’s biggest Disney Store, a 53,000-square-foot complex in Pudong
that will include a 10,800-square-foot store, plus an outdoor plaza. The
company is targeting Chinese families through its Disney English-language
centers, and it is supporting Chinese entrepreneurs through its venture
capital arm, Steamboat Ventures. The VC fund has invested in more than a
dozen Chinese startups and last month joined with four additional funds to
put $50 million into Beijing-based mobile game developer Chukong
Technologies.
Fortunately for Disney, the company has a valuable ally in China. State-
owned Shanghai Shendi Group is Disney’s partner in the $4.4 billion
Shanghai project. That should help Disney control the damage to its image
among Chinese consumers |
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