Daniel Hruska You may recall that he left Apple about a month ago investigate working conditions in Foxconn – the main manufacturer of its products. Mike Daisey, who has been visiting Chinese factories since 2010 and documenting the working conditions of the workers, also made a significant contribution to this tour. Now it has come to light that some of the "authentic" stories are not true at all.
In the episode retraction (Taking it back) of internet radio The American Life many of Daisey's statements were refuted. Although this episode doesn't claim that everything Daisey said is a lie, it does show reality approaching reality. You can also listen to the original monologue about conditions at Foxconn on the website The American Life, but knowledge of English is required.
Episodes Retraciton attended by Mike Daisey, Ira Glass and Rob Schmitz, who listened to Daisey's interpreter Cathy accompanying him on his trip to Foxconn. It was the interview with Cathy that led to the creation of this episode. This gave Daisey the opportunity to explain the reasons for his lies. So let's go through the most interesting sections from the transcript of the recording.
Ira Glass: “What we can say now is that Mike's monologue is a mixture of real things that actually happened in China and things he only knew about by hearsay and gave as his testimony. The most significant and most outrageous moments of the entire story of the Foxconn visit are apparently fictional.
Reporter Marketplace Rob Schmitz explains that when he first heard Daisey talk about armed patrols around Foxconn, he was quite shocked. In China, only police and military authorities can carry weapons. He also "didn't like" information about Daisey's meetings with workers at local branches of the Starbucks coffee chain. Ordinary employees do not earn enough money for this "luxury". And it was these inconsistencies that prompted Schmitz to talk to Cathy.
Among other things, Cathy claims they only visited three factories, not ten as Daisey states. She also denies seeing any weapons. She has never even seen a real gun in her life, the ones in the movies. She further said that in the ten years she has been visiting factories in Shenzhen, she has not seen any underage workers working in any of them.
Included in Daisey's monologue is a scene where a worker looks in wonder at an iPad that, although manufactured here, has never seen it as a finished product. The worker reportedly describes his first meeting with Cathy as "magic". But Cathy vehemently refuses. According to her, this event never happened and is fictional. So Ira Glass asked Daisey what really happened.
Ira Glass: "Why don't you just tell us exactly what happened at this point?"
Mike Daisey: "I think I was scared."
Ira Glass: "From what?"
(long pause)
Mike Daisey: "From the fact that..."
(long pause)
Mike Daisey: "I was probably scared that if I didn't say it, people would just stop caring about my story, which would ruin my whole job."
Daisey goes on to confide in Glass that during the fact-checking of his story, he secretly wished he This American Life did not broadcast precisely because of the impossibility of verifying the reliability of his information.
Ira Glass: “You were afraid I'd say, well, not a lot of the information in your story is based on true events. So will I need to sufficiently verify any inconsistencies before airing, or were you worried that you would end up with two completely different stories, which of course would start a wave of uproar and questions about what really happened? Did something like that cross your mind?'
Mike Daisey: “The latter. I was very worried about two stories. (Pause) From a certain point…”
(long pause)
Ira Glass: "From a certain point what?"
Mike Daisey: "From a certain point I wanted the first option."
Ira Glass: "So we don't air your story?"
Mike Daisey: "Exactly."
In the end, Daisey also got space for his defense in the studio.
Mike Daisey: "I think you can trust me with all the hype."
Ira Glass: “That's a very unfortunate statement, I would say. I think it's okay for someone in your position to say - not everything is literally true. You know, you did a nice show that touched a lot of people, it touched me too. But if we could label her as honest and truthful and honest, people would definitely react differently.”
Mike Daisey: "I don't think that label fully describes my work."
Ira Glass: “What about the label fiction? "
Foxconn itself is understandably happy that Daisey's lies have been exposed. A spokesperson for Foxconn's Taipei division commented on the whole event as follows:
“I'm glad the truth is winning out and Daisey's lies have been exposed. On the other hand, I don't think that all the inconsistencies in his work have been removed so that it is possible to determine what is and what is not true. According to many people, Foxconn is now a bad company. That is why I hope that these people will come and personally and find out the truth.”
And finally - what does Mike Daisey really think about his job?
"I stand behind my work. It is created "for effect" in such a way as to connect the reality between the amazing devices and the cruel conditions of their production. It consists of a combination of fact, my notes and a dramatic concept to make my story whole. Extensive investigations carried out New York Times and a number of other groups dealing with labor law, documenting the conditions in the production of electronics, would prove me right."
only three factories were visited – was this a ladies-only tour? xD
Of course not ;-)
you are awkward
your mom is awkward
Calm down, gentlemen.