Chinese Announcer Removed from Broadcast After Warning "Be Careful of COVID-19"... Past 'Kimchi Insult' Also Revealed

Chinese announcer Zhu Xia.
Photo by Online Community Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] A Chinese announcer who previously sparked controversy for 'belittling kimchi' was removed from all broadcasting programs after posting a message on her social media urging caution against COVID-19.

On the 5th (local time), according to local media such as China's Sohu.com, Zhu Xia (朱霞), an announcer at Liaoning TV in Liaoning Province, northern China, received a request from a netizen during a live broadcast on her personal SNS live streaming platform on the 30th of last month to "report on the COVID-19 situation in Shenyang City."

In response, Zhu Xia said, "Today's reported confirmed COVID-19 cases in Shenyang City are 1 in Wehong District and 7 in Heping District," adding, "However, the situation in Huanggu District is not optimistic either."

She continued, "People living in Huanggu District should be careful," and added, "I cannot explain the details, but it is an area with a high risk of COVID-19 infection, so personal prevention measures must be thoroughly observed."

After mentioning the location 'Huanggu District' several times, Zhu Xia asked, "Did you understand what I said?" and repeatedly emphasized to netizens to be cautious.

Following the broadcast, suspicions arose among Chinese netizens that "Shenyang City might be concealing the spread of COVID-19."

As the controversy grew, Liaoning TV removed Zhu Xia, who had been anchoring news and hosting various programs, from all programs she appeared in and imposed a suspension.

Liaoning TV stated, "Zhu Xia made inappropriate remarks related to COVID-19, damaging the image of our broadcasting station and having a negative impact on society," adding, "We will observe whether she reflects on her actions and decide on follow-up measures."

Meanwhile, in January last year, during the kimchi origin dispute between Korea and China, Zhu Xia drew public outrage from domestic netizens by belittling kimchi as "a trivial food in China."

At that time, Zhu Xia said, "Kimchi is an important food in Korea, but kimchi or pao cai in China is merely a traditional food of the ethnic Korean minority," and added, "A small country can perish if it rudely insults its large neighboring country."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.