Courtesy of Mish.
Witch Hunt Review
As I noted earlier today China Starts Witch Hunt for Those Obstructing Government Efforts to Prop Up Stocks.
Public Confession
It took less than a day for a victim of the witch hunt to be rounded up for public display. The Financial Times reports China Reporter Confesses to Stoking Market ‘Panic and Disorder’.
A leading journalist at one of China’s top financial publications has admitted to causing “panic and disorder” in the stock market, in a public confession carried on state television.
The detention of Wang Xiaolu, a reporter for Caijing magazine, comes amid a broad crackdown on the role of the media in the slump in China’s stock market, which is down about 40 per cent from its June 12 peak. Nearly 200 people have been punished for online rumour-mongering, state news agency Xinhua reported at the weekend.
“I shouldn’t have released a report with a major negative impact on the market at such a sensitive time. I shouldn’t do that just to catch attention which has caused the country and its investors such a big loss. I regret . . . [it and am] willing to confess my crime,” [said Xiaolu]
When the market turmoil began in June, Beijing imposed restrictions on media reporting of the stock market. The independent China Digital Times, which monitors internet censorship in the country, said in June media were told to avoid stoking panic.
“Do not conduct in-depth analysis, and do not speculate on or assess the direction of the market,” it reported an official directive as saying. “Do not exaggerate panic or sadness. Do not use emotionally charged words such as ‘slump’, ‘spike’ or ‘collapse’.”
Word Police US Style
With thanks to reader Mark for the link, Campus Reform reports that Professors Threaten Bad Grades for Saying Oppressive Words.
Multiple professors at Washington State University have explicitly told students their grades will suffer if they use terms such as “illegal alien,” “male,” and “female,” or if they fail to “defer” to non-white students.
According to the syllabus for Selena Lester Breikss’ “Women & Popular Culture” class, students risk a failing grade if they use any common descriptors that Breikss considers “oppressive and hateful language.”
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