Another week, another public round of warm applause for America’s new ambassador to China, Gary Locke, the first Chinese-American to hold the job.China seems to be fascinated by him.
This Monday, “China Economic Weekly,” published by the ruling Communist Party, took its turn running a star-struck story about Mr. Locke’s common touch. It was only the latest in a spate of positive press reports and Internet comments since Washington’s man in Beijing took up his post last month.
This time, the reporter recounted how Locke and his family waited in line for an hour, just like any ordinary person, for a seat on the cable car carrying tourists down from the Great Wall.
The Chinese public’s fascination with this sort of thing, says social commentator Yao Bo, derives from the fact that “the ambassador looks Chinese, but his behavior is completely un-Chinese.”
