Post by NZBC on Aug 15, 2007 20:17:42 GMT 12
By Nicola Kean | 5 Mar, 2007
¡°As each week passes with news of yet another arrest involving a Chinese-sounding name, disquiet grows in heartland New Zealand about the quality of migrants we¡¯re letting through the door.¡±
They were the words that launched a thousand blog entries. Entitled ¡°Asian Angst: is it time to send some back?¡± former ACT MP Deborah Coddington¡¯s December cover story for North and South caused a storm of controversy. Detailing mostly gory tales of crime committed by Asian immigrants to New Zealand ¨C many involving meat cleavers ¨C the story advocates sending Asian immigrants back to their countries of origin.
The reaction was swift and outraged. The article promoted rather unfortunate stereotypes of a ¡°gathering crime tide¡± and an ¡°Asian menace.¡± Some called it outright racism. Asia New Zealand Foundation Media Adviser Charles Mabbett calls it ¡°a throwback to a time fi fteen or twenty years ago.¡± The article approached the issue using a ¡°dragnet approach of tackling everything Asians could possibly be blamed for, bizarrely even a TB outbreak in Palmerston North,¡± he says. ¡°They included anything negative they could possibly attribute to Asian communities in New Zealand in one article.¡±
Others criticised its subjectivity, and the lack of Asian voices in the article. Several prominent members of the Asian immigrant community were interviewed, but not quoted. Indeed, one of two Chinese-New Zealander interviewees who were quoted, Lincoln Tan, Managing Editor of the Chinese and English newspaper iBall, later distanced himself from the article. Writing to North and South Editor Robyn Langwell, he says that Coddington¡¯s ¡°use of my quote would have given the impression that I supported her views ¨C which I most defi nitely do not.¡±
In a quick email between deadlines, Tan told Salient that he felt his discussion with Coddington was taken out of context. ¡°When I spoke with Deborah, it was more just giving her an overview of the situation as I saw it,¡± he said. He often discusses story ideas with journalists at The Herald and The Press, and didn¡¯t expect to get quoted. ¡°I did feel a little let down.¡±
www.salient.org.nz/cover-story/when-silence-is-yellow-not-golden
¡°As each week passes with news of yet another arrest involving a Chinese-sounding name, disquiet grows in heartland New Zealand about the quality of migrants we¡¯re letting through the door.¡±
They were the words that launched a thousand blog entries. Entitled ¡°Asian Angst: is it time to send some back?¡± former ACT MP Deborah Coddington¡¯s December cover story for North and South caused a storm of controversy. Detailing mostly gory tales of crime committed by Asian immigrants to New Zealand ¨C many involving meat cleavers ¨C the story advocates sending Asian immigrants back to their countries of origin.
The reaction was swift and outraged. The article promoted rather unfortunate stereotypes of a ¡°gathering crime tide¡± and an ¡°Asian menace.¡± Some called it outright racism. Asia New Zealand Foundation Media Adviser Charles Mabbett calls it ¡°a throwback to a time fi fteen or twenty years ago.¡± The article approached the issue using a ¡°dragnet approach of tackling everything Asians could possibly be blamed for, bizarrely even a TB outbreak in Palmerston North,¡± he says. ¡°They included anything negative they could possibly attribute to Asian communities in New Zealand in one article.¡±
Others criticised its subjectivity, and the lack of Asian voices in the article. Several prominent members of the Asian immigrant community were interviewed, but not quoted. Indeed, one of two Chinese-New Zealander interviewees who were quoted, Lincoln Tan, Managing Editor of the Chinese and English newspaper iBall, later distanced himself from the article. Writing to North and South Editor Robyn Langwell, he says that Coddington¡¯s ¡°use of my quote would have given the impression that I supported her views ¨C which I most defi nitely do not.¡±
In a quick email between deadlines, Tan told Salient that he felt his discussion with Coddington was taken out of context. ¡°When I spoke with Deborah, it was more just giving her an overview of the situation as I saw it,¡± he said. He often discusses story ideas with journalists at The Herald and The Press, and didn¡¯t expect to get quoted. ¡°I did feel a little let down.¡±
www.salient.org.nz/cover-story/when-silence-is-yellow-not-golden