In the over 30 posts following the article, many of them pointed out the misinterpretation by the WSJ. The author had to revise the article, and inserting an original quote from "iPad is a fashion" at the bottom: "In terms of price, the Apple products are not cheap, and some are even very expensive. There are also some inconvenient issues, such as disabling pirated software, paid music and movies, etc."

Even so, it is difficult to cover up the fact that the author deliberately took a quote from the article out of context. Many commentators pointed this out.

A user with the ID "tao001jp" said that,

"I'm afraid to say the writer was lost in translation. I read the article in Chinese and feel Ding's intention was not to complain that you can't use pirate software on the iPad. If you read the Chinese version carefully, he is actually using those "downsides" to say how successful the iPad is in China."

The fact that one short essay can raise the concern of the WSJ shows the sensitivity of intellectual property issues. But we can also see how US media like the WSJ look at China, and what kind of news they rack their brains to look for.

In fact, Fletcher's trick is not novel and some Western media report China in a similar fashion. They are looking for the news they need.

Just as the user "Annoyed" wrote: "It's not a misunderstanding or mis-translation. It's a deliberate policy of the WSJ mouthpiece for the Western I'm-so-superior party."

The author is a senior editor with the People's Daily. dinggang@globaltimes.com.cn