I Counted

By Wang Dingjun

These jokes have been circulating on different media publications:

The editor in chief of a tabloid had to repeatedly chastise a newcomer for his inaccuracy in writing news reports.He accuses the reporter of yellow journalism because he submitted a story on a hot movie celeb's Broadway debut that says, “One thousand and one eyes on star's rousing debut.” The editor presses the guy about why it gives an odd number of eyes.

He says, “It all checks out, boss.I counted'em up real careful, see? And I swear there was a guy among the audience who was blind in one eye.”

Headlines are the bread and butter of any paper, even a rag.It's the headline that catches the reader's eye.One day a girl who's down on her luck gets her panties in a bunch and throws herself under a train.Then a zany editor runs the story under such a big black headline as “Crazed tart's plot to crash train thwarted.”

A muckraking gazette runs a hot story of corrupt political double dealings one day under the bold, splashy headline: “Half the city councilmen on the take.” This gets the city council all up in arms and they call the paper furiously demanding a retraction.So the editor assures them he'll change it and the next day the story runs under the new headline: “Half the city council NOT on the take.”(FromInspiration, Zhejiang Literature and Art Publishing House.Translation: Chase Coulson)