{"id":30017,"date":"2008-12-22T22:06:56","date_gmt":"2008-12-23T05:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/?p=30017"},"modified":"2008-12-22T22:42:22","modified_gmt":"2008-12-23T05:42:22","slug":"saga-of-fake-tiger-photos-rears-head-again-in-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chinadigitaltimes.net\/2008\/12\/saga-of-fake-tiger-photos-rears-head-again-in-china\/","title":{"rendered":"Saga of Fake Tiger Photos Rears Head Again in China"},"content":{"rendered":"
The Southern Tiger photo scandal<\/a> is still ongoing, over a year after the photos were initially contested. Reuters reports<\/strong><\/a>:<\/p>\n \nThe pictures, which showed a tiger crouching in a forest setting, sparked an Internet furore led by experts who identified the photos as faked. Local media accused officials of endorsing them as a means of promoting tourism in a poor region.<\/p>\n But Zhou, who was given a suspended jail sentence this year for the fraud, has returned to his original claim that he really did photograph a tiger, the official Xinhua news agency said in a report on its website (www.xinhuanet.com)<\/a> [Chinese].<\/p>\n It published a brief handwritten letter by Zhou describing his first encounter with a tiger in the summer of 2007, which he said he was unable to photograph due to a problem with his camera. He said was only able to take pictures in October of that year.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n