[Rick Lee]

I've never met any westerner who's traveled to China and not come back a changed person, absolutely loving that country. It's a very different place and anyone who calls themself a world traveler, but hasn't yet made it to China, simply can't imagine what it's like. Obviously, western journalists are not real loved in China and, unless they're there totally undercover, are not gonna get to see things most travelers would see. Though I am not a journalist, my company's news-sounding name got me a good going over by their embassy folks when I went for my first visa. I would say covering China has to be an inherent conflict of interest in itself for any western journalist. You simply can't be in that profession and remain unbiased in a country with a state-controlled media, where you have a lot of restrictions on what you can say or whom you can talk with. Sure am glad I'm not a journalist.