Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Ned Boudreau. I am delighted to be here today, to celebrate the 4th anniversary of the launch of the Global Times. I will be brief.

First, allow me to tell you that, as an author and former journalist, I am a ‘news junkie’. I watch very little TV but for science and wildlife channels, and I have not watched a movie in over fours years. Rather, I read news for at least three hours every day.

I have lived and worked in Shanghai for over eight years. For the first four years, I read only the China Daily. In fact, I wrote over 50 columns for the China Daily weekly broadsheet, Shanghai Star. I relied on China Daily because People’s Daily was not available, in English, at my local newsstands.

Thus, when I saw the first issue of Global Times, I bought it. Ever since, I’ve read the print edition of Global Times every day except when I am out of the country. Its reportage is outstanding among mainstream Chinese media. More importantly, however, Global Times addresses crucial, often highly sensitive, issues – and is not at all afraid to speak truth to power regarding corruption, governance, pollution, or related social issues.

But don’t take my word on this. I also read The Economist every week, cover to cover. All here present know that The Economist is, perhaps, first among equals in the realm of elite global media. Here is what The Economist had to say about the Global Times, in an article entitled “The Chinese are coming” in the 4 March 2010 edition:

“Since last April a racy new English-language tabloid, Global Times, has given China Daily a run for its money . . . Global Times, though controlled by the People's Daily, is a remarkable innovation. The Chinese-language version has long been popular among hotheaded nationalists. But the English edition strays into realms once thought taboo.”

In fact, if you check The Economist website – as I did again this morning --, you will find that Global Times is a key source for reportage in The Economist. There are 70 editorial references to Global Times, on all the most crucial Chinese issues.

Think of that: Seventy major references in The Economist in less than four years.

Nothing further I may say will or can add to the encomiums so richly deserved by the Global Times.

Feng Yu. Duan Wuning. I salute and congratulate you for the excellence of Global Times. And for the bravery you demonstrate by speaking truth to power. I will applaud. Hopefully, so will all other attendees.