Chinese Netizens understand that its government controls every form of the media. State censorship is the norm, and Chinese people have come to accept that. Even so, Chinese Netizens regard the internet as a better reflection of reality than traditional media. Through their personal blogs, they are able to express…
Category: East Asia
JAPAN: Cityscapes of Iron
The great contemporary artist Enoki Chu was inspired to become a painter after an unfortunate motorcycle accident. Chu decided to challenge himself and began exhibiting his paintings in 1965 to 1970 in the Kobe-based Niki-kai exhibitions. One of his artistic inspirations was the infamous Marcel Duchamp, who is notorious for (among…
TAIWAN: Tang Fei Video Interview
The Asia Media Interview HOW DANGEROUS IS CHINA’S MILITARY BUILDUP? An Exclusive Interview with Tang Fei, former Premier of Taiwan and Career Air Force Officer. Interviewed by Tom Plate, Asia Media’s Editor in Chief [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/31936425[/vimeo] No one can be certain, of course, but Tang Fei’s guess may be better than…
JAPAN: Newspaper Raises Questions About Nuclear Export Policy
The issue of nuclear energy has been hotly debated amongst the citizens of Japan following the March 11 disaster. One the views that has been frequently voiced is the opinion that Japan should turn away from nuclear energy altogether…
CHINA: Advice on How to Understand the Chinese In Bits and Bytes
A recently published article in China Daily by Natalie Thomas discusses the recent success of Charlie Custer in taking on the role of relaying information about current events in China…
NORTH KOREA: Border Guards Shoot Defector on Chinese Soil
According to the prominent Seoul-based daily newspaper Korea Times, Kim Yong-hwa, head of the North Korea Refugees Human Rights Association of Korea, witnessed a North Korean defector shot to death by North Korean border guards on Chinese soil shortly after the defector crossed a border river…
TAIWAN: Want Want’s Appetite Increases
Want Want Group, a Taiwanese conglomerate initially known for its food production, is currently in the process of purchasing China Network Systems, one of Taiwan’s leading cable television companies…
NORTH KOREA: Is Its Collapse Imminent?
The Chosun Ilbo obtained a 480-page special report that features five pages dedicated to the Korean Peninsula and included is an estimate that North Korea’s collapse is imminent, perhaps as soon as 2020.
China Blog Blotter – Issue #2: What They Are Saying About Tibet
No one in China more exposed to Tibet independence campaigns than the country’s Netizens. No matter how intensely the Chinese government would like to block such websites, these “Free Tibet” pitches somehow see through the cracks of the Great Firewall. But prompted by national education campaigns regarding the Tibetan independence…
China Blog Blotter – Issue #1: Humility Spotted on the Rise of China
“The Middle Kingdom,” as China refers to itself, does not hesitate to smile inwardly at its continuous rise. For many, this rise is a symbol of its own manifest destiny to return to it’s former glory and be deserving of its proper title of “Middle Kingdom.” Although the world is…
Pacific Perspectives: An Asian Leader Receives Coveted American Award
They honored the controversial, though increasingly appreciated, Asian statesman Lee Kuan Yew at the historic Ford Theater in Washington recently, and frankly I wish I had been there.