China’s Running Naked Man Goes Viral

Wednesday, 26 January 2011 | by Pat's Picks

Even if stripping down naked doesn’t get your point across, at least it gets people looking at you. That seems to be the logic of the latest Chinese viral sensation, a man named Chen Weiwei. Unable to get a train ticket home after waiting in line for 14 hours, Chen decided to strip down to his skivvies and complain to the station master. A state photographer happened to catch the argument and snapped a few photos. The photos soon went viral and people across China congratulated Chen, now known simply as the Running Naked man, for standing up to the state-run railroad.

Then the story took a turn. Local newspapers published a quote from Chen saying he received gratis tickets for himself and his family from the railroad after his public blowup. The railroad company quickly denied doing so, worrying that people would think “once you strip, you’ll get a ticket.” I read about the whole thing in the LA Times who tried to clear up the mess by talking directly to Chen. His response to the reporter’s query was classic: “Family scandals should not be exposed to foreigners.” Maybe the reporter should take a cue from Chen’s play book, strip down and demand a quote.

Click here to check out all the photos of Chen’s naked fight. They’re pretty hilarious.