TVB: Naughty Miss Hong Kong
TVB newsroom head Keith Yuen Chi-wai is unimpressed with the political opinions of the new Miss Hong Kong 2013, Grace Chan. She urged in an interview that CY should listen to people’s opinions regarding universal suffrage. More than 170,000 Hongkongers voted for her, compared with the 689 votes that made CY our chief. Yuen reportedly stormed into the newsroom saying the story was too “politicized” and then cut it from News at 6:30.
Our take: Grace Chan is perplexed at why CY doesn’t want to be liked. But as the winner of a TVB show who’s about to get told off by TVB officials, she might soon get
why CY’s keener to please his bosses than the people.
Are You Middle Class Enough?
CUHK has published a survey on how Hongkongers define “middle class,” concluding that to qualify your household has to earn $30K-$60K monthly, own property worth $2-8 million and care about current affairs.The survey, paid for by the Bauhinia Research Foundation, is intended to help policy makers. But surely policy maker and Financial Secretary John Tsang doesn’t need the help? He said in February that he was part of the middle class, because he drinks coffee and watches French movies.
Our take: Still a harsh set of conditions, but we’re glad it’s a more achievable standard than the bar set by Tsang. We can fake a taste for coffee and French movies, but it’s hard to match a six-figure monthly salary. Anyway, pass the single-origin. “Jules et Jim” won’t watch itself.
Newspaper Ads Demand CY’s Resignation
Pan-democrats bought half-page ads in two local papers and a Taiwanese daily, demanding CY Leung step down for “mainlandizing” Hong Kong. CY denounced the ad, and Beijing mouthpiece The Global Times called it “naïve.” The same day, the Silent Majority for HK ran a full-page ad in three local papers, slamming Occupy Central for bringing “suffering” to Hong Kong. Newspapers have been more… silent on the subject.
Our take: The ads got tons of coverage: $50,000 well spent. A single ad won’t change anyone’s mind, so if this stunt was just to piss off CY and Beijing, mission accomplished.