Comments 'at about 8:20' put CCTV in the firing line
By Xu Chi |
March 18, 2013, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
China's state broadcaster has been accused of hiring celebrities and opinion leaders to criticize Apple's services online after its annual consumer rights show aired on Friday.
The accusations came after popular actor Peter Ho, who has 5.41 million followers, apparently made a mistake when he published a comment on his Weibo microblog criticizing Apple during the evening show at 8:26pm.
"Apple plays so many tricks with their consumer service? As an Apple fan, I was deeply hurt. Have you done right by Jobs and young men who have sold their kidneys (to buy iPhones)? Giant shops bully customers," Ho wrote in the microblog.
But at the end of his microblog was written: "To publish at about 8:20pm."
The microblog immediately caught the attention of Chinese netizens who noted that the evening show, broadcast nationwide by China Central Television, had attracted several comments from celebrities and opinion leaders after the program criticized Apple's after-sales service.
Almost all the celebrities and opinion leaders were found publishing comments critical of Apple on their microblogs at about 8:20pm.
Children's writer Zheng Yuanjie, who has nearly 5 million followers on Weibo, wrote at 8:20pm: "Chinese customers choose Apple not only for its technology, but also for its thoughtfulness, justice, care and value. I am so shocked to hear that Apple uses double standards with Chinese customers and those in developed countries. Chinese customers have spent the same or higher prices but receive lower standard of service. May the missing part of Apple's logo not be their conscience."
Zheng's opinion was echoed by popular microblogger Liuyishou and Deng Fei, a former investigative journalist, who published their comments at 8:23pm and 8:19pm.
Although they were all criticizing Apple, they published their message using iPhones or iPads. Weibo notes which devices are used to post comments.
Many netizens questioned whether Ho and other celebrities had been paid by CCTV to make comments "at about 8:20," a phrase which quickly became a joke and was repeated often online.
Some said Ho had published the "requirement by CCTV" by mistake because he or whoever wrote his microblog was too lazy to read the whole message.
Ho deleted the microblog at about 10pm, claiming that someone had hacked his account.
"Now it's me Peter Ho in person. Someone hacked my account and published the last microblog! Who can tell me what's going on?! Ho wrote.
Yesterday, Ho published another statement on Weibo saying he and his broker couldn't have written the post on Friday as he was filming in Beijing from 7:30am to 9:30pm. Ho said he didn't find anything wrong with his microblog until 9:50pm when he returned to hotel.
Ho said he had asked police to look into the case.
At 0:35am on Saturday, Zheng wrote on his microblog that he hadn't taken money or anything else to participate in the show.
A netizen used his Weibo account to comment: "I feel so sad that some celebrities and so-called opinion leaders would so easily bow to authorities in disregard to their followers."
"CCTV has done serious investigations to expose Apple's poor customer services, but now it just seems like a joke," wrote another.
So far, CCTV has not responded to the claims.
The "3.15" show, whose name refers to the date of Consumer Rights Day, has named and shamed a number of prominent companies in the past.
In this year's show, Apple's after-sales service in China was highlighted and two carmakers - Volkswagen and Jianghuai - criticized for car problems.
Last year, the program exposed food safety violations by McDonald's.
The fast food giant was forced to apologize and its share price slumped as China's army of half a billion microbloggers unleashed their anger in online comments.
The accusations came after popular actor Peter Ho, who has 5.41 million followers, apparently made a mistake when he published a comment on his Weibo microblog criticizing Apple during the evening show at 8:26pm.
"Apple plays so many tricks with their consumer service? As an Apple fan, I was deeply hurt. Have you done right by Jobs and young men who have sold their kidneys (to buy iPhones)? Giant shops bully customers," Ho wrote in the microblog.
But at the end of his microblog was written: "To publish at about 8:20pm."
The microblog immediately caught the attention of Chinese netizens who noted that the evening show, broadcast nationwide by China Central Television, had attracted several comments from celebrities and opinion leaders after the program criticized Apple's after-sales service.
Almost all the celebrities and opinion leaders were found publishing comments critical of Apple on their microblogs at about 8:20pm.
Children's writer Zheng Yuanjie, who has nearly 5 million followers on Weibo, wrote at 8:20pm: "Chinese customers choose Apple not only for its technology, but also for its thoughtfulness, justice, care and value. I am so shocked to hear that Apple uses double standards with Chinese customers and those in developed countries. Chinese customers have spent the same or higher prices but receive lower standard of service. May the missing part of Apple's logo not be their conscience."
Zheng's opinion was echoed by popular microblogger Liuyishou and Deng Fei, a former investigative journalist, who published their comments at 8:23pm and 8:19pm.
Although they were all criticizing Apple, they published their message using iPhones or iPads. Weibo notes which devices are used to post comments.
Many netizens questioned whether Ho and other celebrities had been paid by CCTV to make comments "at about 8:20," a phrase which quickly became a joke and was repeated often online.
Some said Ho had published the "requirement by CCTV" by mistake because he or whoever wrote his microblog was too lazy to read the whole message.
Ho deleted the microblog at about 10pm, claiming that someone had hacked his account.
"Now it's me Peter Ho in person. Someone hacked my account and published the last microblog! Who can tell me what's going on?! Ho wrote.
Yesterday, Ho published another statement on Weibo saying he and his broker couldn't have written the post on Friday as he was filming in Beijing from 7:30am to 9:30pm. Ho said he didn't find anything wrong with his microblog until 9:50pm when he returned to hotel.
Ho said he had asked police to look into the case.
At 0:35am on Saturday, Zheng wrote on his microblog that he hadn't taken money or anything else to participate in the show.
A netizen used his Weibo account to comment: "I feel so sad that some celebrities and so-called opinion leaders would so easily bow to authorities in disregard to their followers."
"CCTV has done serious investigations to expose Apple's poor customer services, but now it just seems like a joke," wrote another.
So far, CCTV has not responded to the claims.
The "3.15" show, whose name refers to the date of Consumer Rights Day, has named and shamed a number of prominent companies in the past.
In this year's show, Apple's after-sales service in China was highlighted and two carmakers - Volkswagen and Jianghuai - criticized for car problems.
Last year, the program exposed food safety violations by McDonald's.
The fast food giant was forced to apologize and its share price slumped as China's army of half a billion microbloggers unleashed their anger in online comments.
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