{"id":1065432,"date":"2021-11-29T16:15:37","date_gmt":"2021-11-29T21:15:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1065432"},"modified":"2021-11-29T16:15:57","modified_gmt":"2021-11-29T21:15:57","slug":"disney-removes-simpsons-episode-in-hong-kong-in-latest-move-to-appease-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/disney-removes-simpsons-episode-in-hong-kong-in-latest-move-to-appease-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Disney Removes Simpsons Episode In Hong Kong In Latest Move To Appease China"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdisney-removes-simpsons-episode-in-hong-kong-in-latest-move-to-appease-china%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1065432&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Disney has reportedly removed an episode of \u201cThe Simpsons\u201d from its streaming platform in Hong Kong in a move some are viewing as an effort to appease China.<\/p>\n<p>The episode in question, \u201cGoo Goo Gai Pan,\u201d first aired in 2005 and shows the iconic family from Springfield visiting China, including a location called \u201cTien An Men Square.\u201d There, a sign informs them, \u201cOn this site, in 1989, nothing happened.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/news\/general-news\/simpsons-china-censorship-1235053711\/\">The Hollywood Reporter<\/a> noted, \u201cIt appears the episode has suffered precisely the kind of the censorship it was written to ridicule.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The episode\u2019s disappearance follows on the heels of China\u2019s new amendment to its film censorship law that allows Beijing to censor entertainment it deems a threat to national security. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2021\/global\/asia\/disney-plus-simpsons-hong-kong-1235120971\/\">Variety<\/a>, \u201cGoo Goo Gai Pan\u201d is still available on the platform in other parts of Asia.<\/p>\n<p>A professor at the Academy of Film at Hong Kong Baptist University who specializes in censorship told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/5104cac1-28f8-43cd-b99e-ac78bcbbfb67\">The Financial Times<\/a> he believes the episode\u2019s omission is \u201clargely to do with the business interest of US streaming companies.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is in their best interest not to offend the Chinese government, or simply create complications,\u201d professor Kenny Ng said, adding, \u201cthey have no strong motivation to put on offending materials at this sensitive moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Ng also said he fears other streaming giants could follow Disney\u2019s lead as \u201ca new ground for negotiations between freedom of expression and censorship\u201d emerges.<\/p>\n<p>Numerous outlets, including The Daily Wire, have reached out to the Walt Disney Company for information about how and why the episode was removed, but so far Disney press representatives have not responded to any media requests.<\/p>\n<p>As The Daily Wire previously <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/communist-china-appears-to-block-online-tiananmen-square-museum-follows-crackdown-on-other-exhibits\">reported<\/a>, the Chinese Communist Party has been taking strong steps in recent months to suppress the memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre. On that site, on June 4, 1989, the People\u2019s Liberation Army opened fire on peaceful Tiananmen activists demonstrating for democracy, killing hundreds, possibly thousands (estimates vary).<\/p>\n<p>For the last two years, Beijing has banned candlelight vigils in Hong Kong commemorating the deaths of the Tiananmen victims. They\u2019ve also censored social media groups dedicated to honoring them. Then, in June, state authorities shuttered a museum dedicated to Tiananmen, seized its assets, and arrested some of the proprietors.<\/p>\n<p>China has been exercising greater control over Hong Kong since passing a new national security law in 2020, which The Daily Wire described as sweeping:<\/p>\n<p><em>Enacted during secret sessions that bypassed Hong Kong\u2019s legislature, it gives police the power to imprison dissenters without trial, shut down newspapers, and investigate cultural institutions without regard to local Hong Kong authorities. As&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.amnesty.org\/en\/latest\/news\/2020\/07\/hong-kong-national-security-law-10-things-you-need-to-know\/\">Amnesty International<\/a><\/em><em>&nbsp;has said, based on the law\u2019s tenets, \u201c\u2018Endangering national security\u2019 can mean virtually anything,\u201d including wearing clothing with certain pro-freedom slogans.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>LAST CHANCE to SAVE 50% on memberships to The Daily Wire with code DW50. Without our members, none of this would be possible. Join us to keep the mission alive.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/subscribe\">member<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Disney has reportedly removed an episode of \u201cThe Simpsons\u201d from its streaming platform in Hong Kong in a move some are viewing as an effort to appease China.The episode in question, \u201cGoo Goo Gai Pan,\u201d first aired in 2005 and shows the iconic family from Springfield visiting China, including a location called \u201cTien An Men Square.\u201d There, a sign informs them, \u201cOn this site, in 1989, nothing happened.\u201dAs The Hollywood Reporter noted, \u201cIt appears the episode has suffered precisely the kind of the censorship it was written to ridicule.\u201dThe episode\u2019s disappearance follows on the heels of China\u2019s new amendment to its film censorship law that allows Beijing to censor entertainment it deems a threat to national security. According to Variety, \u201cGoo Goo Gai Pan\u201d is still available on the platform in other parts of Asia.A professor at the Academy of Film at Hong Kong Baptist University who specializes in censorship told The Financial Times he believes the episode\u2019s omission is \u201clargely to do with the business interest of US streaming companies.\u201d\u201cIt is in their best interest not to offend the Chinese government, or simply create complications,\u201d professor Kenny Ng said, adding, \u201cthey have no strong motivation to put on offending materials at this sensitive moment.\u201dNg also said he fears other streaming giants could follow Disney\u2019s lead as \u201ca new ground for negotiations between freedom of expression and censorship\u201d emerges.Numerous outlets, including The Daily Wire, have reached out to the Walt Disney Company for information about how and why the episode was removed, but so far Disney press representatives have not responded to any media requests.As The Daily Wire previously reported, the Chinese Communist Party has been taking strong steps in recent months to suppress the memory of the Tiananmen Square massacre. On that site, on June 4, 1989, the People\u2019s Liberation Army opened fire on peaceful Tiananmen activists demonstrating for democracy, killing hundreds, possibly thousands (estimates vary).For the last two years, Beijing has banned candlelight vigils in Hong Kong commemorating the deaths of the Tiananmen victims. They\u2019ve also censored social media groups dedicated to honoring them. Then, in June, state authorities shuttered a museum dedicated to Tiananmen, seized its assets, and arrested some of the proprietors.China has been exercising greater control over Hong Kong since passing a new national security law in 2020, which The Daily Wire described as sweeping:Enacted during secret sessions that bypassed Hong Kong\u2019s legislature, it gives police the power to imprison dissenters without trial, shut down newspapers, and investigate cultural institutions without regard to local Hong Kong authorities. As\u00a0Amnesty International\u00a0has said, based on the law\u2019s tenets, \u201c\u2018Endangering national security\u2019 can mean virtually anything,\u201d including wearing clothing with certain pro-freedom slogans.LAST CHANCE to SAVE 50% on memberships to The Daily Wire with code DW50. Without our members, none of this would be possible. Join us to keep the mission alive.The Daily Wire is one of America\u2019s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a\u00a0member.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":112,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1065432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1065432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/112"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1065432"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1065432\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1065432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1065432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1065432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}