A few months ago, your correspondent answered some questions emailed to me by a journalism student for a research paper about Sino-African ties. I answered them briefly, and then thought nothing more of it.

Then I saw yesterday's China Daily. There's an article titled China's loans to Africa are help not harm, which quotes me twice. The article was also republished by Xinhua.

Aside from the oddity of a national newspaper cribbing content from a student project, my words were slightly minced by The China Daily, so for the record I would like to clarify what I said, excerpt by excerpt.

1.

"We would rather take loans from those who don't set conditions. In the past few years, this has often meant China," Jeremy Goldkorn, a reporter from South Africa in China, said.

Firstly, I could be described as a media and Internet entrepreneur, a blogger or as an old 油条 (youtiao — hardened adopted Beijinger), but I am not a reporter.

Secondly, the quote was subtly reworked. This is the original question and my answer:

Q: Would they [African countries and people] rather take loans from the World Bank, China or the West?
A: Anyone who offers loans without conditions. In the last few years, this often means China.

2.

"Among African countries' ruling elites, there is a great deal of enthusiasm for China's involvement in Africa because many people see China as a development partner that is not tainted by a history of colonialism, a partner that does not 'talk down' to African countries," Goldkorn said.

That's an exact quote. But it is missing the sentence that originally concluded my answer:

But there are also fears amongst common people that China will take African jobs, or exploit African resources without giving anything back.

This post is not intended to criticize anyone, least of all the student who asked me the questions. The questions I answered were submitted for a group project, and the final article as it appeared was edited by the China Daily's editors who probably were not aware of the source. Furthermore, I agree with the general tone of the published article.

However, Chinese State-owned media organizations that want to tell China's story in English would do well to remember that presenting only one side of the story rings a very false note to people accustomed to Western media.

Western media may be biased in its own ways, but the method of telling a news story uses the same structure that the ancient Greeks devised for rhetoric and arguments: thesis, antithesis, synthesis. In other words, tell a story from one point of view, explain the views of people who don't agree, and then draw a conclusion based on both sides of the argument.

The conclusion of the China Daily article might be that China's actions are well-intentioned, but as long as the newspaper does not acknowledge that not everyone sees it that way, its stories will not be credible.

My complete original responses to the student questions are below:

Q: What is your biggest concern when it comes to the development of South Africa?
A: The widening gap between rich and poor is still a serious problem in South Africa. South Africa's worst problems such as the prevalence of AIDS and other infectious diseases and the high crime rate are all caused by poverty.

Q: What is the biggest difference between South Africa and other African counties?
A: South Africa is one of the most developed African countries. It has a varied, multi-racial population (which is why South Africans like to call it the 'Rainbow Nation'). However, the peace of the mutli-racial society is still sometimes threatened by tensions from our past -- i.e. apartheid, which ended in 1994 with our first democratic elections, but which still haunts us.

Q: What do the average African people think is the reason for African's longstanding underdevelopment?
A: Exploitation by European colonial powers, and corruption. Some also blame cultural factors.

Q: What is the common image of China in African people's mind? Do they consider China a friend?
A: Most African people (including South Africans) do not know China or Chinese people very well. Amongst African countries ruling elites, there is a great deal of enthusiasm for China's involvement in Africa because many people see China as a development partner that is not tainted by a history of colonialism, a partner that does not 'talk down' to African countries. But there are also fears amongst common people that China will take African jobs, or exploit African resources without giving anything back.

Q: Would they rather take loans from the World Bank, China or the West?
A: Anyone who offers loans without conditions. In the last few years, this often means China.

Q: Do they think that China's investments in Africa are doing good to their countries?
A: I think it is too early to say: judging from what I read in the African media, there is a huge range of opinions from real enthusiasm to fear.