China Turns the Table on Olympic Boycotts
Nobody wants to be a target of boycotts, especially not China. Rather than accepting foreign condemnation quietly, millions of Chinese are standing together in solidarity, determined to strike foreign critics where they're most vulnerable- financially.
After the Olympic torch relay in Paris, where the torch was almost stolen from wheel-chair bound torchbearer Jin JIng, anti-French sentiment has been high in China, and the French luxury brand LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) has been a prime target.
LVMH has traditionally had strong sales in China, with its popular Louis Vuitton handbags, and role as the major shareholder in Carrefour stores (large retailers similar to Wal-Mart,) but the tables have turned.
Some widely-circulated text messages and Internet bulletin boards are calling for a May 1st boycott of Carrefour stores because of LVMH's alleged ties to the Dalai Lama, but the company has vehemently denied these rumors.
In an April 16 statement, the company said that charges against it are "groundless," and that it respects "China's sovereignty and supports unification course."
Whether or not LVMH's support of China will change the anger directed towards Carrefour and other French-based companies remains to be seen, but France has hardly been the only target of China's fury. Many Western media outlets, CNN in particular, haven't made many new fans in China.
Millions were irate when CNN's Jack Cafferty referred to the Chinese as "the same bunch of goons and thugs they've been for the last 50 years" and called Chinese products "junk."
CNN addressed the issue, saying that "it did not mean to cause offense" and that the comments referred to a small number of government officials- not all Chinese people. China rejected this apology and Foreign Ministry spokesman Jiang Yu told reporters that " their statement did not sincerely apologize for his remarks (so) we cannot accept it at all."
Whlie Chinese worldwide are clearly upset with CNN and most other media outlets, this scenario doesn't translate into the U.S. cultural context. Reading the paper or watching an analysis on any given day, U.S. politicians, especially President Bush, take much more verbal abuse than being called "a thug."
Most Americans who hear criticism about the U.S. or its leaders from foreign press don't take it personally. They're probably just as, if not more critical of those in power.
In China, by contrast, the distinction between criticism of the government and criticism of "China" or "Chinese" isn't quite as clear, which is one of the reasons Chinese nationalism is so high right now. For many Chinese, criticism from foreign journalists, many of whom don't really understand China or its political situation, is something to be taken personally.
As a result, China's scorching response to CNN is a very popular decision domestically, since it's a way to protect national interests. The problem with this strategy, however, is that it just doesn't translate across the Pacific.
If anything, the approach does little more than reinforce negative sentiments of Chinese leadership.
Since CNN is really only seen in China's 5-star hotels, or by the select few people who get foreign satellites, CNN doesn't really have much to lose by criticizing China.
A China boycott of CNN doesn't really strike the same blow as a boycott of Carrefour. So instead of calling for a CNN boycott, some Chinese plan to boycott its advertisers.