I have seen only two issues of the new Chinese version of That’s Beijing. The first was awful, with yawning gaps of white spread between boring articles.

Presumably stung by criticism of their first effort, the editorial staff filled in the huge chunks of white by lifting quotes out of the articles and spashing them around the top of the page. That works fine if the quotes is a teaser – something that draws you into reading the article. But I guess it’s hard to find catchy quotes when the article is inane.

I just feel sorry for the trees that gave up their lives for this rubbish. Or, if it’s really recycled paper that this rag is printed on, then toilet paper would make a better end-use.

Are you referring to the “Munching Donkey Balls” issue or a more recent tome?

Cheers, Boyce

viva la beijinger!

None of the writing “talent” presumably. None of the advertisers (the majority seem to have gone over to theBeijinger). Left over office stationary?

Or do they just get the name?

Perhaps readers won’t notice the change: “That’s Beijing, the name you know!”

Collin Crowell

Managing Editor
City Weekend

Yes, money is involved, of course you are right, but just not as much as everyone seems automatically to assume it is. Just as when I tell people in my brief version how I: ‘built a media company in China and had it taken from me’, many listeners outside of China immediately assume I published something that upset the government. Not the case at all but could be argued that that, sort of, was part of it, at a long stretch.

The money involved with ‘that’s’ right now is a 10 million yuan investment from a new state ‘partner’ or ‘investor’. Where that money will end up is anybody’s guess.

By the by, bit of a bugger to find out someone has given RMB 10 million to the people who did actually offer me five million, out of court, unofficially and unaccountably, to settle the trademark case. (They did not mean it, but it was ‘illustrative’ of something that they made the offer.)

Mark

Nitpick away, though I think it’s extreme to say, “it is not to do with money.” There may well be other issues to it’s hard to believe money is not a big factor.

Cheers, Boyce

Forgive me for nitpicking but CIP do not ‘own’ the trademark “that’s”. It is still under dispute and awaiting a long overdue (14 months overdue) decision from the high court in Beijing. CIP nicked the TM with fabricated evidence from me when they nicked my whole business (not just that’s China, but that’ Beijing too, started by Gao Bang Shanghai not True Run, but yes run by them)in 2004. They did not need any fabricated evidence for that, just the publishing licence and some nasty threats to my staff.

And amused by your joke about CW’s staff being deported. Once the entire foreign staff of that’s BJ were deported in a tiff we had with another publishing partner. I got them all back in bar one, who I was happy to leave sweating in HK. (Long story)

And finally, it is not to do with money. There is far more to it than that. It is about face, power, politics, and much else besides.

Thanks for the slot

Mark Kitto