AsianWeek

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AsianWeek
The October 6, 2006 front page of AsianWeek
Type	National weekly newspaper
Format	Tabloid

Owner	Pan Asia Venture Capital Corporation
Publisher	James Fang
Editor	Ted Fang
Founded	1979
Headquarters	San Francisco, CA United States

Website: AsianWeek.com

AsianWeek is an English-language newspaper covering the Asian American community, published in San Francisco. It was founded in 1979 by the late John T.C. Fang.

It is one of the mostly widely circulated newspapers of pan-Asian news, across all Asian ethnic groups[1], providing coverage of Asian American issues such as the killing of Vincent Chin, Asian American college admissions, and quotas on Chinese in competitive San Francisco examination schools. Today Asian Week continues to publish cartoons, commentaries, and cultural features, as well as a website.

[edit] AsianWeek Controversy

This section documents a current event.
Information may change rapidly as the event progresses.

AsianWeek was severely criticized for publishing on Febrary 23, 2007, a column by Kenneth Eng named "Why I Hate Blacks". Prior to this incident, AsianWeek had published other inflamatory race-themed columns by Eng, including: "Proof that Whites Inherently Hate Us" and "Why I Hate Asians." Several Asian American organizations called for an apology, as well as a repudiation of the columnist and his views, and circulated an online petition to that effect.

AsianWeek published a front page apology in its February 28th issue, severed all ties with Eng, and held various public forums. However, Editor-in-Chief Samson Wong has made no public statements, and the paper has refused to explain who approved Eng's column to be published. AsianWeek has simply stated that its editorial policy is "under review." Many continue to criticize AsianWeek for having retained Eng prior to the outcry despite several previous racist writings of his as well as for only condemning Eng's anti-black column and not his anti-white or anti-Asian ones.

The criticism of AsianWeek stemmed not only from their decision to publish a racially inflammatory column but also their apparent failure to apply any kind of standards in choosing their writers. A quick Google search of Kenneth Eng could have revealed plenty of evidence of Eng's bizarre behavior, which was not limited to racist writings but also included an obsession with dragons, unorthodox methods of promoting himself and his science-fiction writings^[1], and a megalomaniacal, narcissistic personality^[2].

Without announcement or public explanation, AsianWeek apparently made some editorial staff changes in late March 2007, reflected in the masthead of its March 30 edition. Former editor-in-chief Samson Wong’s title is listed as “Senior Editorial Consultant.” Ted Fang, formerly editor-at-large, is now listed as Editor and Publisher.