{{short description|Chinese academic and author}} {{family name hatnote|[[Kong (surname)|Kong]]|lang=Chinese}} {{Infobox person | honorific_prefix = | name = Kong Qingdong | honorific_suffix = | native_name = 孔庆东 | native_name_lang = zh | image = <!-- just the name, without the File: or Image: prefix or enclosing [[brackets]] --> | alt = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1964|9|22}} | birth_place = [[Harbin]], [[China]] | other_names = "Kong the [[Monk]]" | education = PhD in Chinese Literature and Language | alma_mater = [[Peking University]] | occupation = [[Professor]] of [[Chinese studies]] | years_active = | employer = [[Peking University]] | organization = | known_for = Controversial social commentary | notable_works = | website = {{URL|http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/1198367585}} {{in lang|zh}} }} {{Infobox Chinese|order=st|s=孔庆东|t=孔慶東|p=Kǒng Qìngdōng|mi={{IPAc-cmn|k|ong|3|-|q|ing|4|d|ong|1}}|c2=孔和尚|p2=Kǒng Héshàng|l2=Kong the Monk}}
'''Kong Qingdong''' (born September 22, 1964) is a Chinese academic, author, talk show host, and social commentator. Kong is a prominent and controversial Chinese media figure, known for his vulgar and often brusque critiques on political issues and various individuals and groups. Kong has often been portrayed in the media as a figure of the [[Chinese New Left]], calling for a reversal of the [[reform and opening up]] and a return to Mao-style policies.
==Biography== Kong was born to a worker's family during the [[Cultural Revolution]] era,{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}} and was devoted to studying [[Lu Xun]] early in his academic career. He proclaims himself as a 73rd generation descendant of [[Confucius]].
Kong first achieved fame as the author of various books describing his graduate student life in [[Peking University]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Kong|first=Qingdong|title=47樓207——北大醉侠的浪漫宣言|year=1998|publisher=内蒙古教育出版社|isbn=978-7-5311-3677-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Wu|first=Zhong|title=The writing is on the wall|url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/IE23Ad01.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016235220/http://atimes.com/atimes/China/IE23Ad01.html|url-status=unfit|archive-date=16 October 2007|publisher=Asian Times Online|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref> in which the self-described "Drunkard of Peking University" commentated on many Chinese social issues. An avid reader and researcher of Chinese ''[[wuxia]]'' fiction, Kong briefly lectured on ''[[wuxia]]'' author [[Jin Yong]] on [[China Central Television|CCTV]]'s ''[[Lecture Room]]'' series, as well as giving a talk on the Chinese [[essayist]] and [[language reform]]er [[Lu Xun]] on the same series. After he was named a professor of [[Chinese studies]] by [[Peking University]], Kong began publishing essays in which he espoused [[Chinese patriotism]] and communist [[orthodoxy]]. Kong has praised the [[North Korea]]n government on various occasions, claiming that the Koreans "would surely die off", if not for "the great leader ([[Kim Jong-il]]) and his [[North Korean Workers' Party|Workers' Party]]".<ref name="kong_blog_nk">{{cite web|url=http://blog.sina.com.cn/s/blog_476da36101000300.html|author=Kong, Qingdong|title=听我唱段十三亲|publisher=Kong Qingdong's blog|date=8 April 2006|access-date=2 June 2010}}</ref> Additionally, Kong has organized study groups on ''[[Juche]]'', the official ideology in [[North Korea]], at Peking University; some sources, such as ''[[Southern Metropolis Daily]]'', accuse the group of providing [[military intelligence|intelligence]] to North Korea.<ref name="stabbing" />
In the 2000s, Kong spent 2 years in [[South Korea]], teaching at the [[Ewha Womans University]].<ref name="google">{{cite book|title=한국 쾌담: 베이징대 쿵 교수 의 도발적 한국 론|date=2007|publisher=올림|isbn=9788995883976|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lYeaMwAACAAJ|access-date=30 April 2015}}</ref>
Kong hosts a talk show program and his [[microblog]] has a large following.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
=== Involvement in the Tiananmen Square Protest === In 1989, after April 25,<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=余杰：孔慶東不姓孔 曾參與六四 |url=https://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20120207002697-260102?chdtv |website=中時新聞網 |date=2012-02-07 |language=zh-Hant-TW |author=藍孝威 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230830140410/https://www.chinatimes.com/newspapers/20120207002697-260102?chdtv |archive-date=2023-08-30 |access-date=2023-08-30}}</ref> Kong Qingdong participated in the [[Tiananmen Square protests]] and was elected as the fourth convener of the [[Peking University Students' Movement Preparatory Committee]]. A few days later, he was replaced after other student leaders became dissatisfied with his obedience to the university party committee.<ref>{{cite book|title=《六四日记》|author=封从德|publisher=溯源书社|year=2009|location=香港|pages=646|isbn=978-988-16442-6-8}}</ref>
After the [[Tiananmen Square protests]], he was purged, stripped of his qualification to pursue a doctorate, and in 1990 was assigned to teach at [[Beijing No. 2 Middle School]].<ref name=":0" /> A few years later, he returned to Peking University to continue his studies,<ref name="狡辩">{{cite news|url=http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/template/apple/art_main.php?iss_id=20120122&sec_id=4104&subsec_id=11866&art_id=16006673|title=孔慶東狡辯再罵港人冇腦|publisher=香港蘋果日報|date=2012-01-22|accessdate=2012-01-22|archive-date=2012-04-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120422020635/http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/template/apple/art_main.php?iss_id=20120122&sec_id=4104&subsec_id=11866&art_id=16006673|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/template/apple/art_main.php?iss_id=20120206&sec_id=4104&subsec_id=15337&art_id=16043909&coln_id=6970284|title=與孔慶東絕交書|author=中國獨立作家 余杰|publisher=香港蘋果日報|date=2012-02-06|access-date=2012-02-06|archive-date=2012-04-10|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120410055435/http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/template/apple/art_main.php?iss_id=20120206&sec_id=4104&subsec_id=15337&art_id=16043909&coln_id=6970284|url-status=live}}</ref> obtaining his Ph.D. in 1996 and remaining there as a faculty member.<ref>{{Cite journal|title=语文教学要从孔子那里开始继承传统——访北京大学孔庆东教授|author=桑哲|url=http://lib.cqvip.com.era.lib.swjtu.edu.cn/Qikan/Article/Detail?id=9498542&from=Qikan_Search_Index|journal=现代语文：理论研究|issue=3|year=2004|page=2-4}}</ref>
On May 23, 2014, a person claiming to have been a "Central Guard Regiment officer" involved in the suppression of the [[Tiananmen Square protests]] left a comment on Kong Qingdong's [[Sina Weibo]] page, stating that the government's actions at the time were legitimate measures to maintain social stability. Kong Qingdong immediately responded:<ref>[https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3713026882029857 孔庆东 六四] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119021326/https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3713026882029857}}，自由微博.</ref><ref>[https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3713028845493988 孔庆东 六四（2）] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015004959/https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3713028845493988}}，自由微博.</ref> "Nonsense, there was no riot at all. It was you who opened fire and massacred the people, then turned around and framed them! Can you name a single student who took part in a riot?" He added, "You're speaking without knowing the facts — you've wronged the hundreds of patriotic civilians who were slaughtered, and even those few PLA soldiers who died unjustly."
Kong also improvised further revelations about the events at the time, saying things such as: "The people who burned army vehicles were unidentified; students even handed over some vandals to the police," "By late April, American influence had already infiltrated," "Some student leaders had been bought off by the U.S. and were eager to see the massacre happen," "Certain officials falsified military reports and exaggerated the situation; in fact, by late May, the movement was already in decline," "Agents tried to smear Mao Zedong's portrait with ink to frame the students, but the students caught them on the spot and turned them over to the police," and "On May 20, Peking University students and Beijing citizens bravely resisted, blocking the main PLA field forces outside the Third and Fourth Ring Roads."<ref>[https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3712972998278792 孔庆东] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112025116/https://freeweibo.com/weibo/3712972998278792}}，自由微博.</ref>
In June of the same year, Kong Qingdong accepted an on-site interview with journalists, which was recorded and first published by [[Duowei News]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://china.dwnews.com/news/2014-06-03/59475358.html |language= |title=独家：25周年孔庆东首谈六四事件[视频] |publisher=多维新闻网 |date=2014-06-03 |accessdate= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606121500/http://china.dwnews.com/news/2014-06-03/59475358.html |archive-date=2014-06-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> In the interview, as a participant in the [[Tiananmen Square protests]], Kong commented on several pro-democracy figures such as [[Feng Congde]], [[Wang Dan (dissident)|Wang Dan]], [[Chai Ling]], and [[Wu'er Kaixi]], while also revealing little-known details about the incident. The video interview, first released by Duowei, drew significant public attention and analysis. <ref>{{cite web |url=http://china.dwnews.com/news/2014-06-03/59475480.html |language= |title=官方或吹和解风 孔庆东谈六四视频解读 |publisher=多维新闻网 |date=2014-06-03 |accessdate= |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606121509/http://china.dwnews.com/news/2014-06-03/59475480.html |archive-date=2014-06-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Major news outlets such as the [[Hong Kong Economic Times]] also reported on it.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8OnM3heTO4&ytsession=jUzyKGL0iXp2RDQ4p4Sn85lijlYcPEJWVfZMevIlfP4aDeIjMGwRIXh-pf6OUFTqAIstrOjsv5qX5ZEKT2tLPYrsrpwwOKVMDg0JKm4hS_p45l0sYmAUVhCl_ShBQ1LLI6Pd54AEJqkL4GJH95cSdOcfxGlZj7ullLliAvxM4mKnXgsf2Qi9IP8hkjiwpv3XRx2QKgkC6J-MsuOno9Wtinvu2O2fSKvyouDbVwrlC9SlqfAVbib7-WCa4GigwOJkfdjcS8Dy1da5Umh2MI9_tB2Sij5nkjqoZGIQ23ZCI5nrolnErdY8BpCtsPcMzEzn7jwm2NCWIOc 孔庆东首谈六四事件]{{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201015003731/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8OnM3heTO4&ytsession=jUzyKGL0iXp2RDQ4p4Sn85lijlYcPEJWVfZMevIlfP4aDeIjMGwRIXh-pf6OUFTqAIstrOjsv5qX5ZEKT2tLPYrsrpwwOKVMDg0JKm4hS_p45l0sYmAUVhCl_ShBQ1LLI6Pd54AEJqkL4GJH95cSdOcfxGlZj7ullLliAvxM4mKnXgsf2Qi9IP8hkjiwpv3XRx2QKgkC6J-MsuOno9Wtinvu2O2fSKvyouDbVwrlC9SlqfAVbib7-WCa4GigwOJkfdjcS8Dy1da5Umh2MI9_tB2Sij5nkjqoZGIQ23ZCI5nrolnErdY8BpCtsPcMzEzn7jwm2NCWIOc}}.2014-06-03.YouTube.[2014-6-4].</ref>
===Involvement with the Confucius Peace Prize=== Kong Qingdong has been involved in the [[Confucius Peace Prize]], a Chinese prize set up in response to [[Nobel Peace Prize]], which was awarded to the [[Human rights in the People's Republic of China|Chinese dissident]] [[Liu Xiaobo]] amid China's protest. Kong claims that the prize, which was awarded to [[Lien Chan]] and [[Vladimir Putin]] in its first two years (none of whom accepted it),<ref>{{cite news|last=Wong|first=Edward|title=For Putin, a Peace Prize for a Decision to Go to War|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/16/world/asia/chinas-confucius-prize-awarded-to-vladimir-putin.html|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[New York Times]]|date=15 November 2011}}</ref> accurately reflects [[Confucius]]'s vision of peace.<ref>{{cite news|title=孔子和平奖二次颁发 获奖者再度缺席|url=http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20111209-Peace-Prize-Putin-135310893.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107232033/http://www.voanews.com/chinese/news/20111209-Peace-Prize-Putin-135310893.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 7, 2012|author=Zhang, Nan|access-date=22 January 2012|date=9 December 2011}}</ref>
==Political views== {{New Left in China|People}} Kong, in addition to being described as a nationalist, has also been described as a figure of the [[Chinese New Left]],<ref name=voa>{{cite news|last=Xiao|first=Xun|title=孔庆东高调挺薄 重庆模式市场仍在 (Kong Qingdong praises Bo Xilai, 'Market' for Chongqing Model still present)|url=https://www.voachinese.com/content/article-20120317-chongqing-party-boss-143039156/947527.html|access-date=19 March 2012|newspaper=Voice of America|date=17 March 2012}}</ref> a political faction that believes China's economic reforms have gone too far and the country needs to revert to a more socialist and egalitarian society with heavy state control. He was a supporter of quasi-Maoist political figure [[Bo Xilai]] prior to and after the politician's disgrace. He has criticized the Chinese government, calling it "shameless", ostensibly for its pursuit of capitalist-style policies.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
==Controversies== Kong is notorious for numerous forthright and [[Mandarin Chinese profanity|expletive-ridden]] rants against a number of groups and individuals, and his polarizing views have frequently generated controversy, but have also rallied supporters.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
===Personal attacks=== Kong once called former United States Secretary of State [[Hillary Clinton]] a "bitch", and performing artist [[Jiang Kun (comedian)|Jiang Kun]] a ''xiasanlan'' ({{zh|c=下三滥}}), a derogatory term for "three dirty professions" of prostitution, beggars, and street artists).{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
===Attacks on media=== Kong has repeatedly criticized China's liberal media, particularly Southern Chinese journals and newspapers, as "''[[hanjian]]'' media". Kong has also called [[CCTV (China)|CCTV]] "inhuman".<ref>{{cite web|last=Chow|first=Elaine|title=Quote of the Day: ''Unhappy China'' author hates journalists|date=6 December 2010|url=http://shanghaiist.com/2010/12/06/quote_of_the_day_unhappy_china_auth.php|publisher=[[Shanghaiist]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Bandurski|first=David|title=Are Chinese media a public nuisance?|url=http://cmp.hku.hk/2010/12/06/8762/|work=China Media Project|publisher=[[Hong Kong University]]|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>
In November 2011, ''[[Southern Weekly]]'', described as a "beachhead" for China's liberal media, reached out to Kong for an interview. Rejecting the request, Kong published on his [[microblog]] that "the treasonous newspaper has harassed me once again by asking to interview me"; Kong answered the request with a Chinese expression of profanity using the word ''mom'' three times ({{zh|c="去你妈的！滚你妈的！操你妈的！"|l=Go to your mom! Roll to your mom! Fuck your mom!}}).<ref name=bbc1>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/indepth/2011/11/111115_analysis_kongqingdong_3mothers|publisher=[[BBC]] Chinese|access-date=21 January 2012|title=评论：中国媒体右倾政治左转？ (Opinion: China's Media leaning right, but politics turning left?)|date=15 November 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Xu|first=Pingting|title=Hot online: wolf dad, Kong swears, ova trade, bus safety|url=http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2011-11/21/content_14134749.htm|publisher=[[China Daily]]|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref> The use of profanity drew Kong considerable criticism online,<ref>{{cite web|last=Liu|first=Yineng|title=What has Professor Kong Qingdong done this time?|url=http://english.pku.edu.cn/News_Events/News/Campus/8941.htm|publisher=[[Peking University]]|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Professor's tart reply sets off controversy|url=http://english.eastday.com/e/111119/u1a6212782.html|publisher=Eastday|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618055747/http://english.eastday.com/e/111119/u1a6212782.html|archive-date=2015-06-18}}</ref> to the point of calling for his resignation,<ref>{{cite news|last=Liu|first=Yi|title=北大教授孔庆东用排比粗口骂记者激怒网友|url=http://news.ifeng.com/society/2/detail_2011_11/08/10487391_0.shtml|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[Phoenix Television]]|date=8 November 2011}}</ref> although he also received widespread support, with some online straw polls turning out in favor of Kong.<ref name="phoenix_profanity">{{cite web|url=http://news.ifeng.com/mainland/special/kongqingdong/|publisher=[[Phoenix Television]]|access-date=11 November 2011|title=粗口教授孔庆东}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://view.news.qq.com/zt2011/kqd/index.htm|publisher=腾讯网|date=11 November 2011|access-date=11 November 2011|title=为何6成网友支持孔庆东骂记者}}</ref> Commentators pointed out that Kong's popularity is a symptom of the widespread resentment of the elite liberal media, which often run editorials critical of poor people and make economic arguments to justify the increasing [[wealth gap]].<ref name=bbc1/>
Kong himself asserted he used the expletives deliberately to "lure out" his enemies in the liberal Chinese media, having predicted that they would respond to him vehemently with what he called "counterrevolutionary encirclement."<ref name=bbc1/> Some eighty media outlets reportedly criticized Kong for his remarks. Following the barrage of negative media attention, Kong then directly criticized the state-run [[Xinhua News Agency]], saying that it was no longer under the control of the Party's Central Committee but taking orders from Guangdong party chief [[Wang Yang (official)|Wang Yang]],<ref name=bbc1/> seen as the representative of China's political 'right.' The journalist in question later defended Kong, claiming that the profanity is "a later embellishment when Kong published his microblog post".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://blog.china.com/u/100221/368894/201111/8966633.html|publisher=中华网|access-date=11 November 2011|title=双面孔庆东|archive-date=7 July 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120707090737/http://blog.china.com/u/100221/368894/201111/8966633.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Overseas media speculated that Kong's remarks was merely part of a much larger battle between the political left and right in China. His singling out of Wang Yang by name was cited as evidence of the intensifying struggle for China's future political direction.<ref name=bbc1/>
===Attack on journalist=== In November 2008, [[Qian Liexian]] (pen name of Xu Lai), a journalist at ''New Beijing'', a newspaper affiliated with ''[[Southern Daily]]'' at the time, alleged in his blog that Kong Qingdong has been interrogated by the Beijing police for spying for [[North Korea]]. A few months later, in February 2009, Qian was assaulted and stabbed by Yang Chun, a personal assistant of Kong Qingdong, who accused Qian of offending "a friend".<ref>{{cite news|last=Branigan|first=Tania|title=Chinese blogger Xu Lai stabbed in Beijing bookshop|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/feb/15/china-blogger-xu-lai-stabbed|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[The Guardian|Guardian]]|date=15 February 2009|location=London}}</ref> ''[[Southern Metropolis Daily]]'', another newspaper affiliated with ''[[Southern Daily]]'', criticized Kong Qingdong's involvement in the affairs.<ref name="stabbing">{{cite web|url=http://ent.nfdaily.cn/content/2009-08/07/content_5509329.htm|title=孔庆东被曝泄露情报 助理刺伤媒体人获刑四年半|publisher=京华时报|date=7 August 2009|access-date=15 May 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100701112717/http://ent.nfdaily.cn/content/2009-08/07/content_5509329.htm|archive-date=1 July 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>
===Attacks on government=== Kong has criticized the [[Shenzhen]] municipal government as "[[reactionary]]", and the Chinese government "shameless."{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
===Support for Bo Xilai=== In March 2012, upon the dismissal of [[Bo Xilai]], a renowned leftist figure in China, Kong showered Bo with praise on his talk show, calling Bo a "mob-fighting hero." Kong called Bo's dismissal by the Chinese authorities "a [[counterrevolutionary]] coup."<ref name=voa/> Kong also took a moment to "criticize the people, the masses... what have you done to construct socialism? What have you done for Chongqing, for China? If you are a supporter of Bo Xilai, then what have you done to support Bo Xilai? What have you done to save the country from sinking into the abyss of capitalism? Don't just sit there waiting for a lecture from professor Kong and lament the state of affairs, this world isn't just for heroes to save!"<ref name=yt1>{{cite web|last=Kong|first=Qingdong|title=孔庆东含泪力挺薄熙来煽动"大家都起来"|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25KEAuHmzR8|publisher=YouTube|access-date=19 March 2012}}</ref>
===North Korea=== Kong has expressed admiration for the [[North Korea]]n ''[[Juche]]'' ideology, in addition to its late leader [[Kim Jong-il]].<ref name="kong_blog_nk" />
===Western culture=== Kong is critical of [[Western culture]]. He has supported a [[boycott]] of the film ''[[Kung Fu Panda 2]]'', calling it an instrument of [[cultural imperialism|cultural invasion]] by the West.<ref>{{cite news|title=Kung Fu Panda 2 Film Criticised In China|url=http://news.sky.com/home/showbiz-news/article/16002861|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[Sky News]]|date=31 May 2011}}</ref> After the [[Apple Inc.]] co-founder and CEO [[Steve Jobs]] died in 2011, Kong remarked that "the more people like Steve Jobs die, the better".{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
===Anti-Rightist Movement=== In 2007, the [[Chinese liberalism|liberal]] writer [[Zhang Yihe]] ({{lang|zh-Hans|章诒和}}, daughter of [[Zhang Bojun]], a notable Chinese intellectual and victim of [[Mao Zedong]]'s [[Anti-Rightist Movement]]) published the now banned<ref>{{cite news|last=Martinsen|first=Joel|title=History books get the axe; another Zhang Yihe title falls|url=http://www.danwei.org/media_regulation/banned_books_zhang_yihe.php|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[Danwei]]|date=19 January 2007}}</ref> ''Past Histories of Peking Opera Stars'', in which she criticized the [[Anti-Rightist Movement]] and affirmed that she "will not give up the defense of my basic civil rights, because it affects the dignity and conscience of a person".<ref name="19 January 2007">{{cite web|title=Zhang Yihe's statement and position|url=http://www.zonaeuropa.com/20070120_1.htm|publisher=EastSouthWestNorth|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref> Kong fiercely attacked Zhang in a lecture, referring to Zhang's social class as "the enemy of our government." Kong further defended the [[Anti-Rightist Movement]] and addressed to the "Old rightists" that "you (the rightists) think that you are proper heroes, so why are you asking the Communist Party for vindication? ... our cases have been overturned after the reforms began, but why do the big rightists want to demand hundreds more times in compensation from the people?"<ref>{{cite web|last=Crane|first=Sam|title=China: No Longer a Legalist Society|url=http://uselesstree.typepad.com/useless_tree/2007/01/china_no_longer.html|publisher=The Useless Tree|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref>
===Hong Kong=== {{main|2012 Kong Qingdong incident}} In January 2012, Kong commented on a [[viral video]] on his talk show. In the video, a Mainland Chinese mother on a [[Hong Kong]] [[MTR]] train engaged in an argument with a fellow passenger, a native [[Hong Konger]] who tried to stop her young child from eating on the train. Kong lashed out on the Hong Kong passenger, criticizing the man's use of [[Cantonese]] (as opposed to the [[Standard Mandarin|Mandarin]] used in Mainland China) and calling him a "colonial elitist" and a "bastard." He went on to make sweeping remarks about Hong Kong people in general, saying multiple times that "many Hong Kongers" are "bastards," and "dogs."<ref>{{cite news|last=Chan|first=Minnie|title=HK people labeled as dogs by mainlander|url=http://topics.scmp.com/news/china-news-watch/article/HK-people--labelled-as--dogs-by--mainlander|access-date=22 January 2012|newspaper=[[South China Morning Post]]|date=21 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120715115843/http://topics.scmp.com/news/china-news-watch/article/HK-people--labelled-as--dogs-by--mainlander|archive-date=15 July 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://shanghaiist.com/2012/01/20/kong-qingdong-hk-bastards-dogs.php|title=Kong Qingdong: Hong Kongers are bastards, dogs and thieves|author=Tan, Kenneth|publisher=[[Shanghaiist]]|date=21 January 2012|access-date=22 January 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.163.com/12/0121/10/7O9KLPHG00014JB6.html|title=北大教授孔庆东骂"部分香港人是狗"|author=中国新闻网|publisher=网易新闻|date=21 January 2012|access-date=21 January 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120124023621/http://news.163.com/12/0121/10/7O9KLPHG00014JB6.html|archive-date=24 January 2012}}</ref>
Kong further claimed that the Hong Kong people are "willing dogs of the British ... To this day they think that they are dogs, not people."<ref name="wash_post">{{cite news|title=Beijing professor and descendant of Confucius provokes anger by insulting Hong Kongers protest Beijing'|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/confucius-ancestor-welcomes-year-of-dragon-with-dog-insults-for-hong-kong/2012/01/22/gIQAh2g4IQ_story.html|author=Higgins, Andrew|access-date=23 January 2012|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]|date=23 January 2012}}</ref><ref name="pku_prof_dog" /> Kong stated that in their purported "colonial mentality", Hong Kong people are "dogs in front of the British, but wolves in front of the Chinese", comparing them to Korean and Taiwanese supporters of the [[Imperial Japanese Army]] during World War II. Kong pointed out that the reaction on the MTR would not have been the same had a white person, e.g., a Briton or an American, been in the same situation, rather than a person from Mainland Chinese. Kong asserted that Hong Kong had some "positive traits", one of which is [[rule of law]], which was enforced only because "the British spanked them [Hong Kongers]" if they broke the law;<ref name=expel>{{cite news|title=請北大開除孔慶東|url=http://www.chinareviewnews.com/crn-webapp/mag/docDetail.jsp?coluid=0&docid=101988741|access-date=23 January 2012|newspaper=中國評論月刊|date=23 January 2012}}</ref> and, in response to Hong Kong's society, Kong said of Hong Kong people: "your society's order is maintained by law, which means that you have no self-restraint, which means that you are a vile ({{lang|zh-Hans|賤}} ''[jiàn]'') people".<ref name="pku_prof_dog">{{cite news|url=http://news.mingpao.com/20120121/gaa1.htm|title=北大惹火教授罵港人是狗 時事評論員﹕中港矛盾深化 促政策介入|newspaper=[[Ming Pao]]|access-date=22 January 2012|quote=「（港人）給人家英國殖民者當走狗當慣了，到現在都是狗，你們不是人 … 凡是用法治維持起來的秩序，說明你們的人沒有素質、沒有自覺……一個字：賤。」}}</ref> The remarks circulated widely on social media sites in Hong Kong and became the focus of controversy and protests in the territory in early 2012, causing further tensions in what were already strained Mainland Chinese-Hong Kong relations. Two candidates of the [[2012 Hong Kong Chief Executive election]], [[Leung Chun-Ying]] and [[Henry Tang]], criticized Kong. Reactions were mixed in Mainland China to Kong's remarks. Some prominent Chinese academics came out to criticize Kong, but he also received support on the internet.{{Citation needed|date=August 2022}}
Several days later, Kong fired back at the criticism leveled at him, saying that the media and internet users were on a witch hunt to "cherry pick" his words in order to attack him, asserting that he did not mean to say that Hong Kong people are dogs, or that non-Mandarin Chinese-speakers are dogs.<ref name=dzw>{{cite news|title=北大教授孔庆东称遭断章取义 没说"香港人是狗"|url=http://www.dzwww.com/xinwen/guoneixinwen/201201/t20120122_6875881.htm|access-date=14 March 2012|newspaper=Dongfang Net via Dazhong|date=22 January 2012|archive-date=15 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210115172534/http://www.dzwww.com/xinwen/guoneixinwen/201201/t20120122_6875881.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> He also said that he was confident the "majority of Hong Kongers" were not critical of him and that the internet backlash to be part of a well-executed conspiracy by fringe activists to silence him. In his defence, he stated that "there are good people and bad people everywhere; there are dogs everywhere. Some Beijing people are dogs."<ref name="dzw"/>
===Singapore=== Kong has called a female Singaporean journalist "a whore", in addition to criticizing Singaporeans as "completely ignorant". Kong was quoted as saying "I've been to Singapore. Those people from Singapore... they basically don't know anything."<ref>{{cite news|title=孔慶東罵新加坡女記者是婊子 (Kong Qingdong Calls Female Singaporean Reporter "A Whore")|url=http://www.chinatown.com.au/news.php?id=27007|access-date=11 August 2014|archive-date=12 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812211229/http://www.chinatown.com.au/news.php?id=27007|url-status=dead}}</ref>
===Taiwanese election=== On 28 January 2012, Kong asserted on a Chinese television program that the [[2012 Republic of China presidential election|2012 presidential election in Taiwan]] is "fake democracy" and is "comparable to a soap opera."<ref name=dw1>{{cite web|last=Guan|first=Shan|title=井底之蛙孔庆东|url=http://opinion.dwnews.com/news/2012-01-29/58550397.html|publisher=Duowei|access-date=14 March 2012|date=29 January 2012|archive-date=4 February 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120204071907/http://opinion.dwnews.com/news/2012-01-29/58550397.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> He remarked that he did not see "much progress" in Taiwan during the four years of [[Ma Ying-jeou]]'s term in Taiwan, and that Ma's winning of six million votes was not impressive, "not even half the population of Beijing."<ref name=dw1/> Kong said that Ma's razor-thin margin of victory over his rival [[Tsai Ing-wen]] was comparable to the population of [[Zhongguancun]], a neighbourhood of Beijing, and that it still reflected a deeply divided Taiwanese society.<ref name=dw1/> Both the incumbent [[Kuomintang]] and the [[Democratic Progressive Party]] have rebuked Kong's remarks.<ref>{{cite news|title=蓝绿同声挞伐孔庆东|url=http://www.zaobao.com/zg/zg120128_009.shtml|access-date=29 January 2012|newspaper=聯合早報|date=28 January 2012}}</ref>
===Michelle Obama=== In early 2014, during the [[U.S. First Lady]] [[Michelle Obama]]'s state visit to China, Kong alleged on his [[Sina Weibo]] account that Michelle Obama was successfully confronted and rebuked by a [[Peking University]] student while giving a speech supporting [[free speech]]. The student supposedly asked Michelle Obama, "is America's strength a result of the U.S. secret services listening to the voices of its citizens? Could you tell me in America what the difference is between 'listening to' and 'listening in'?" in a reference to the [[NSA spying scandal]]. Kong further described Michelle Obama's response as “dumbfounded by the question, Michelle Obama eventually replied that she was not there to talk about politics." After Kong had made his allegations, reporters and students present at Michelle Obama's speech denied that the confrontation took place. Kong was subsequently widely panned for having fabricated the entire story, which critics have noted can subject him to arrest under [[Internet censorship in the People's Republic of China#Arrests|the same criteria]] with which the police had arrested hundreds of people accused of spreading rumors online in mid-2013. In response, Kong simply called the critics "dogs of America" and "traitors to China."<ref name=jacobs>{{cite news|last1=Jacobs|first1=Andrew|last2=Yuan|first2=Ren|title=Confrontation Rumors, Easily Debunked, Touch a Nerve|url=http://sinosphere.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/03/27/rumors-of-confrontation-easily-debunked-touch-a-nerve/?_php=true&_type=blogs&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&_r=0|access-date=27 March 2014|newspaper=The New York Times|date=27 March 2014}}</ref>
==="Is Kong Qingdong a savage" incident=== Wu Xiaoping ({{lang|zh|吴晓平}}), host with Nanjing Television, analyzed a case surrounding Kong Qingdong on the former's show ''Tingwo Shaoshao'' ({{lang|zh|听我韶韶}}), with the provocative title "Kong Qingdong: Is he a ''jiàoshòu'' ({{lang|zh|教授}}, "professor") or ''yěshòu'' ({{lang|zh|野兽}} "savage")." Kong, insulted that he was called a "savage", responded by attempting to sue Wu for libel in a Beijing court, seeking damages of 200,000 [[Chinese yuan|yuan]], accusing Wu of tarnishing his reputation. However, the Beijing court ruled against Kong upon first review, stating that the news media has an interest in the "public good" since restricting news commentary to use only "civilized" language would unduly restrict for what is permissible on air and limit "sharp commentary" used to make valid points.<ref name=qingnian>{{cite news|title=中国青年报：不愿容忍舆论批评的孔庆东败诉了|url=http://media.people.com.cn/n/2014/1219/c40606-26236988.html|agency=People.cn|date=December 19, 2014}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/1198367585 Kong Qingdong's blog] {{in lang|zh}}
{{Chinese New Left}} {{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kong, Qingdong}} [[Category:1964 births]] [[Category:Chinese anti-capitalists]] [[Category:Chinese male bloggers]] [[Category:Chinese bloggers]] [[Category:Chinese communists]] [[Category:Chinese Internet celebrities]] [[Category:Chinese Maoists]] [[Category:Chinese nationalists]] [[Category:Chinese New Left]] [[Category:Educators from Heilongjiang]] [[Category:Historians from Heilongjiang]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Peking University alumni]] [[Category:Academic staff of Peking University]] [[Category:20th-century Chinese essayists]] [[Category:21st-century Chinese historians]] [[Category:Writers from Harbin]]