Chinese communist paper fails to realize a fake article by the Onion
November 27, 2012
The Chinese Communist Party's official paper, The People's Daily, did not pick up on the fact that the Onion was running a fake article, calling Kim Jong Un its "Sexiest Man Alive," according to the Los Angeles Times. Instead, the paper ran the story this past Tuesday as a serious feature, and titled the article, "North Korea's top leader named Onion's Sexiest Man Alive in 2012."
The People's Daily was unaware that the Onion was a satirical online publication, and ran the article with a gallery of 55 pictures of Kim Jong Un, according to the news source.
The newspaper went as far as to quote a part of the Onion article in a serious way, which read, "With his devastatingly handsome, round face, his boyish charm and his strong, sturdy frame, this Pyongyang-bred heartthrob is every woman's dream come true. Blessed with an air of power that masks an unmistakable cute cuddly side, Kim made this newspaper's editorial board swoon with his impeccable fashion sense, chic short hairstyle, and of course, that famous smile."
According to The Associated Press, this isn't the first time this has happened either. In 2002, the Beijing Evening News, reported an article by the Onion saying that the U.S. Congress would leave Washington D.C. if they were not able to get a better building.
The People's Daily has yet to comment on the story being published in their paper, but news outlets continue to try and contact them.
Those who want to talk about the recent misunderstanding can make calls to China using international calling cards.