"Human Costs Are Built Into an iPad", a new piece on the notorious tech manufacturer Foxconn by David Barboza and Charles Duhigg of the New York Times, was translated into Chinese and published in Caixin, one of the leading news weeklies in China. They've compiled and translated a list of the reactions by Chinese readers to the piece, which split along the usually lines of tacit acceptance and finger-pointing. more ›

Writing in the New York Times, former Harvard Kennedy School fellow Paul V. Kane argues that giving up military support of Taiwan will reduce American debt, make China happy, help Obama win re-election, and generally just make things peachy-effing-keen for all parties involved: more ›

Writing in the New York Times, novelist Deanna Fei discusses the story of her mixed-race relationship in a personal essay that brings up issues of independence, family, and "yellow fever amplified to a cartoonish extreme." more ›

A few links to start off your day: more ›

Remember the frightening stories earlier this year of men taking butcher knives to children? Turns out that, though it wasn't really mentioned in Chinese press (or the relevant authorities), at least half of the murderers were suffering from schizophrenia and other mental problems. Not excessive anger over housing situations, or frustration at not being heard... but actual hallucinations. The New York Times examines the dearth of mental care in China, in terms of how mentally ill people are treated and the willingness of the government to admit it's a huge problem. It's a situation where everyone is a victim - the mentally ill, and in some cases, the people they end up hurting. more ›

From the Gray Lady comes this amusing feature about the surge in Chinese undergrads at American colleges - 26,000 of them at last count. It seems that enough disposable income and desperation to find an edge in the cutthroat world of post-college jobs has led more and more parents to send their kids abroad, even before graduate school. There, in U.S. colleges both famous (Ha-fu) and less, Chinese 18-to-22-year-olds are practicing English and learning to think critically... as well as eat pepperoni pizzas, go to frat parties and "dress American." more ›

The Chinese government yesterday released a white paper on human rights in the country in 2009, highlighting economic, social and judicial improvements, as well as the role of the Internet in helping to safeguard citizens' civil and political rights. more ›

Edward Wong of the New York Times goes on one of the yearly visits to Tibet allowed for foreign journalists. Apparently it's a lot of watching ethnic performances, being told what to ask monks, and not being allowed to talk to locals - with some skinny dipping thrown in. As China's newest news ventures struggle for legitimacy in the Western world, it will be interesting to see if they can provide anything more than what Western journalists are allowed to see. more ›

Our city was profiled recently in the New York Times' Great Homes and Destinations section. Shanghai expat Nichol Bradford opened her Huaihai Lu lane house to the NYT, showing off her Art Nouveau styled building and Hot Dog Decor-styled... well, decor. There's even a photo gallery so you can get a better look at Ms. Bradford's stylings. As with most homes featured there, it's absolutely out of my personal budget, but gee - ain't it nice to share what you could have in this city? more ›

The New York Times has a photo gallery and write up of the rapid urbanization and sometimes frightening construction happening in China's biggest cities - specifically around Shanghai and Hong Kong. While the writing leans towards flowery ("These photographs are ecological in the classical sense of the word—”eco” meaning “home” in Greek, and “log” meaning “word”—since they create a dialogue about home, about the way infrastructure first reflects our aspirations and assumptions, and then shapes them," says Todd Doddy), the pictures themselves are stark and beautiful, despite being only about half-constructed, entirely generic buildings. more ›

This week in The New York Times' "Room for Debate" section is a question of whether China can gain journalistic credibility, especially in the light of Xinhua's attempt to introduce a 24-hour news channel. Journalism professor Ying Chan, TV journalist Jim Laurie and Caixin Media editor Hu Shuli share their opinions, which range from "not in this lifetime" to "it's really tough to be a journalist in China." more ›

A little bit of light was shed on the saga involving human rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng this week, but his whereabouts remain shrouded in mystery. Speaking with British Foreign Secretary David Miliband, Foreign Ministry spokesman Yang Jiechi denied that Gao had been tortured, but claimed he had been sentenced to prison for subversion. However, Yang did not clarify whether he was referring to a new sentence or citing the suspended sentence handed down to Gao in 2006 for having written an open letter to President Hu Jintao claiming Falun Gong adherents had been mistreated. more ›

Earlier today, Shanghai Daily reported that suicide remained the top killer for local college students in 2009. Thirteen students in Shanghai, including one international student, took their own lives last year. more ›

• Jinjiafang might look like a typical Old Town lane, but its dilapidated courtyards harbor a scandalous history. [CNNGo]
• Oh boy, what's with the New York Times focus on Shanghai recently? First it listed out our blogs, and now its delving deep into our history - particularly how political intrigue here helped shape the country. [New York Times]
• Almost 10,000 journalists have applied to cover the World Expo here, including about "2,000 journalists from overseas media outlets." Wait, does that mean there's 8,000 journalists coming just from inside of China? That sounds dubious. [People's Daily]

Okay, I can't help it. When this little blog gets mentioned by a newspaper somewhere, I get a big fuzzy feeling and it makes my day. So here we are, as at least one little outlet on the internet to learn about Shanghai in a recent New York Times article, "Bloggers Open an Internet Window on Shanghai." more ›

When we first read that New York Times article about Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's support of the USA Pavilion effort here in Shanghai, something didn't sit quite right with us. It's not that the facts didn't seem correct or anything - but almost no mention was made about why Clinton stepped in to raise money in the first place. Wasn't there already a group of people meant to do that? more ›

• We'll be seeing more of Obama's half-brother Mark Okoth Obama Ndesandjo, who will make a cameo on an upcoming Chinese movie "Let the Bullets Fly" as a priest. [People's Daily Online]
• MSN China is in trouble for ripping off popular microblogging service Plurk. Shame! SHAME! [Plurk]
• A Chinese cop who died after being forced to drink too much at a banquet has now been named a martyr. [Associated Press]

As foreigners, we are constantly engaged with the question of race in China: what does it mean to be a foreigner living in Shanghai? At the same time, China's high paced economic and cultural opening has raised similar questions for the populace as it struggles to forge its new, global identity amid an influx of foreign influence. In the background of such discussions lies the specter of race, with all of its implications for a society struggling to deal with immigration and domestic racial tensions: how will China learn to acknowledge and incorporate notions of diversity as it presses on through the 21st century? The New York Times' Room for Debate blog has a number of different perspectives from notable academics on the subject of race in China, and is worth a read if you've ever pondered your own role as an expat. more ›

Euna Lee and Laura Ling, who were detained by North Korean while filming along the China-DPRK border in March, are now set to face trial for their “crimes.” Pyongyang has said that after an investigation into the matter, the women have been charged with illegally crossing the border and could face up to five years in prison if convicted of espionage. Both women were working for Current TV, a Al Gore-funded “youth” cable news channel in the United States. Source: BBC more ›

Hundreds of parents set to the streets on April 15th in a peaceful march, begging for help in finding their missing children. Originally reported by the New Express (translated by Danwei), the parents claim that about 1,000 children have gone missing from the Dongguan area since 2007. At their wits end, they've set out to draw more attention to the apparent, widespread abduction problem. more ›

Everyone in China probably knows about the phenomenon called the "Asian blush" - when a compatriot who's had barely half a beer turns as red as a beet. more ›

North Korea has confirmed that it's detaining two journalists it may have nabbed before they had even crossed the border from Chinese territory. The two women, Chinese-American Laura Ling and Korean-American Euna Lee, were accused of ignoring warnings to stop filming across the Tumen river. more ›

The New York Times has published a new travel piece to our little town titled “36 Hours in Shanghai.” While we'd normally roll our eyes and scoff at these kind of articles and their incredibly milquetoast recommendations (Oh really? We should try the Jean Georges? Thanks! Taste of China indeed!), we think this guide would actually represent a fun day-and-a-half out for Shanghai newbies. We'd probably skip Crystal Jade and 100 Century Avenue (unless you like expensive, mediocre food in uncomfortable chairs), but we applaud the inclusion of Lost Heaven and Yang's. Next time our friends come into town, it's nice to know we have something to forward to them if we're too lazy to come up with a travel plan ourselves. more ›

Randy Cohen, New York Times "The Ethicist" columnist, might be inclined to think so. Granted, Cohen's anti-auto podcast from last week is about Manhattan, but several of his arguments already seem applicable to Shanghai (and, in 2020, when our city's subway system looks like this, there will be few ethical excuses for owning personal cars in most of Shanghai). Cohen lays out five reasons why cars and Manhattanites shouldn't mix. Here's No. 1: "Cars kill. If you introduced a transportation system by announcing, 'It'll only kill 40,000 people a year,' it's hard to believe it would gain widespread popularity." (The number of "traffic deaths" in China was down to 73,484 in 2008, but up 100 percent over the last 20 years.) Listen to all New York Times podcasts here or subscribe via iTunes. They're all free. more ›

• Adam Minter of Shanghai Scrap says China's block of the New York Times does not matter as much as it once did.
• Chris Gill of Shanghai Eye says he has it from a reliable source that the HSK, the Chinese proficiency examination for foreigners will be scrapped in two years.
• Jenny Leung of China Digital Times interviews Qi Hanting, the student who founded the Anti-CNN website.

Image by Roger Wo more ›

Looks like Jennifer 8. Lee of the New York Times is up to her old tricks again, highlighting the ostensibly huge gulf between what goes for Chinese food in the States and the kind that Chinese people actually eat. This time around, it's the fortune cookie that gets the attention. Check out this clip of folks here in China getting introduced to fortune cookies for the first time; read Lee's article here. more ›

That's the headline of a New York Times story about the controversy surrounding a now much-talked-about photo of the men's Olympic basketball team from Spain (See: "Spain's Olympic Basketball Team: Racist? Or just stupid?" for details). Oddly, the story has nothing to do with any possible punishments the Spaniards would face (honestly, we can't think of any — the bad PR and embarrassment should be punishment enough), but the story does offer a little bit of insight as to why the Chinese don't appear to be too bothered by any of this. We are also treated to some rather awkward quotes from the Spanish players trying to explain away their actions. José Calderon even broke out the “Some of my best friends are of Chinese origin" line! more ›

... comes from The New York Times. Check it out and let us know if you have found anything better. more ›

Is the air quality at the Beijing airport really that bad? The New York Times has the story (and some photos): more ›