Zhongnanhai

I meant to chime in much earlier on this topic, but didn't have the time. Now I feel a bit late to the game, but still feel I have 2 cents to add.

When it was originally reported the cardboard baozi were fake, I believed it. I am no conspiracy theorist, and after reading certain blog posts I was sure that the story must have been fake.

Then I saw the photos on ESWN which showed how disgusting and obvious baozi made with cardboard would look. Is any more proof needed?

Well, despite these facts, it appears some people will never believe the government on this issue. My good friend and fellow Zhongnanhai writer Paul James is one who refuses to believe the government's stand on the issue, and I may, slowly, be coming around to his point of view.

The first reason is that the reporter being accused of faking the story, Zi Beijia, had a long history as a credible reporter. He originally worked at China Central Television before being poached by BTV. He was the one who uncovered the use of fake vinegar in China, as well as the fake yangrou chuan story (pork was being doused in spices and tenderizers to taste like lamb). So the question is, why would this reporter, with a strong journalistic track record, all of a sudden plant a fake story?

The second reason is this, and one that I don't pretend I can prove. Hearsay is hearsay, and I'll leave it at that. But one of my very close friends is a high-level employee in state-run media. She was called, along with other state-run managers and staff, to a retreat in the south of Beijing the day after the story was declared fake by management. She was not told at the event whether the story was true or not, but journalists were scolded for not being "politically aware" (as in, don't report stories about food scares at the exact moment China is being criticized internationally on this issue). She believes, 100%, that the fake baozi story was, in fact, real.

Like the assassination of JFK, I'm afraid we'll never know.