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发帖数: 6601 | 1 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2015/09/01/how-a-japanese-
porn-star-became-the-face-of-taiwans-metro-swipe-cards/
Sex sells.
Just ask Taiwan’s transit authority officials — or, better yet, any young
man on the streets of the capital, Taipei. By this morning, chances are that
he was clutching a metro swipe card that featured the sultry visage of Yui
Hatano.
She’s Japanese. She’s 27. And she’s a porn star.
She’s also at the center of the biggest controversy Taiwan has experienced
in weeks, if not months. Parents, women’s groups, politicians all mounted a
fierce campaign against the special-edition cards, arguing that they demean
women and send the wrong message to children. Under pressure, merchants
refused to sell the cards — which also can be used on buses and at
convenience stores — forcing the cards' issuer to sell them through a
telephone hotline.
None of that mattered. At midnight Monday, the phones started lighting up.
Four hours later, the entire run of 15,000 two-card sets had been sold, each
for about $15.40. The precise time of the last set sold: 4.18 a.m. Tuesday.
But before we explain how all this happened, let us clear up one question
that is probably looming large in your minds:
Is Hatano posing, well, as she would in one of her films?
Nope. She is fully clothed on these cards.
She is sporting a lingerie-like white top on the black-colored card of the
set. It is inscribed with the word “Angels.” On the white card, she is
wearing a black top. It reads “Demons." In both, she sports a look that
some might describe as seductive. In Taiwan, many have called it “lewd.”
This is how a spokeswoman for the EasyCard Corp., which is 40 percent-owned
by the Taipei government, described her last week as she defended the
company’s decision to put Hatano's images on the cards.
The photos, Lin Hsiao-chi said, conveyed a “fresh, healthy and beautiful”
image, according to Taiwan’s Central News Agency.
"This set of cards is suitable to put in your wallet and collect,” Lin said
. “When you look at it, it will cheer you up.”
So, how did Hatano end up being the face of Taiwan’s metro cards?
It all apparently began with a simple demand from Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je. He
reportedly asked the chairman of EasyCard to double the company’s business
. And the mayor didn’t learn about the decision to enlist Hatano until
local reporters asked about it at a community meeting, according to the
Central News Agency.
Part of the cards’ proceeds were to be given to charity, and that is what
attracted Hatano. The porn star was seeking to rebuild her image, Lin said,
and so she readily accepted the invitation to be featured on the cards.
The choice of Hatano, although it did not sit well with many Taiwanese, was
not entirely surprising. Japanese cultural icons are extremely popular in
Taiwan. More than 3 million Taiwanese visited Japan last year, more than
tourists from any other nation.
Hatano’s fans cared little about the uproar. Some set up a Facebook page
called “Purchase Yui Hatano EasyCards,” which drew 47,000 followers. By
Monday night, there were nearly 1,700 messages, according to the Central
News Agency.
"This was the first time I wanted to contribute to charity this much, but
not even a single phone call got through," one fan wrote on the page.
Despite the commercial success, it is unlikely that Hatano’s face — or
that of any other porn star — will grace a Taiwanese metro swipe card again
. In a statement, EasyCard apologized for the controversy and pledged an
internal review of the decision.
No doubt, the cards featuring Hatano will become collectors' items. | k*****n
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