CNN says sorry to China over 'goons' remark: foreign ministry
BEIJING - CNN'S president has apologised for remarks made by a
commentator at the US news network who called China a 'bunch of goons
and thugs', state press said on Thursday.
The move came after Beijing complained over comments by Jack Cafferty,
who blasted China for ex****ting unsafe products, which he called 'junk
with lead paint' on it.
'On behalf of CNN, I'd like to apologise to the Chinese people for
that,' Jim Walton, head of CNN, wrote to China's ambassador to the US,
Xinhua news agency quoted foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang as
saying.
'CNN has the highest respect for Chinese people around the world and
we have no doubt that there was genuine offence felt by them over the
Jack Cafferty commentary,' the letter said, according to Qin.
A spokesman for CNN confirmed a letter had been sent, but did not
divulge its contents, saying only that it reiterated 'what we have
said publicly in the past.'
During an April 9 broadcast, Cafferty also hit out at massive Chinese
purchases of US Treasuries and said of China: 'I think they're
basically the same bunch of goons and thugs they?ve been for the last
50 years.'
His comments caused outrage among the Chinese, and China demanded an
apology for what it called 'vile' remarks.
They also fuelled anti-CNN sentiment in China, where Internet blogs
circulated accusations that the network had an anti-Chinese bias in
its coverage of unrest in Tibet.
CNN subsequently issued a statement saying it was not Cafferty's
intention to offend the Chinese people, adding the opinionated
commentator had directed his comments at the government, not the
people.
'It should be noted that over many years, Jack Cafferty has expressed
critical comments on many governments, including the US government and
its leaders,' CNN said in April.
But China rejected this explanation, and demanded an official
apology.
'We hope CNN and Cafferty will learn lessons from this and safeguard
their professional reputation to avoid such things from re-occurring,'
Qin said, according to Xinhua. -- AFP
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