STEVEN SPIELBERG - CHINA'S STATE-RUN MEDIA SLAMS SPIELBERG

CHINA'S STATE-RUN MEDIA SLAMS SPIELBERG

LATEST: The Chinese state-run media has criticised STEVEN SPIELBERG as "naive" and "unreasonable" after the filmmaker quit as artistic director to the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The Oscar winner announced his decision not to take part in the upcoming Games on 12 February (08), accusing China of not doing enough to help end the genocide in the war-torn Darfur region of Sudan. On 14 February (08), the Chinese government issued an official response, expressing "regret" at Spielberg's move. However, the state-run media hasn't been nearly so kind to the Jaws director, and Wednesday's (20Feb08) overseas edition of People's Daily, the Communist Party's official newspaper, launched a thinly-veiled attack on the 61-year-old. Its editorial read: "A certain Western director was very naive and made an unreasonable move toward the issue of the Beijing Olympics. This is perhaps because of his unique Hollywood characteristics. "(He) is not qualified to blame China because he knows nothing about the great efforts the Chinese government has made on Darfur. "This renowned film director is famous for his science-fiction. But now it seems he lives in a world of science-fiction and he can't distinguish a dream from reality."