Meara Stack
Writing 1122
Eric Leake
5 March 2012
A Look Inside the Fear Factory
It is no secret that Apple is one of the world’s most successful companies. As of 2011, Apple’s net worth was 302.47 billion dollars and continues to grow. Apple products are instantly recognized worldwide and especially in the United States it is uncommon to not own an Apple product. Whether it is an iPhone, iPod, iPad, Mac, or Apple TV, people cannot get enough of Apple. This company had total worldwide sales of 65.23 billion dollars in 2011 and this number will continue to grow as Apple continues to release new technology. Until recently, Apple dominated the news each time former CEO Steve Jobs released the latest version iPhone to the public in highly anticipated and publicized event. When new Apple products are released, those crazed Apple fanatics go gaga and start drooling over them desperately wanting to own one, even though their iPhone 3S still works perfectly. However, after recent explosions and suicides in the Apple manufactory in China called Foxconn, Apple has been receiving quite a bit of negative press.
The spark of this negative attention happened several months ago when it was reported that about one dozen Foxconn employees committed suicide in addition to several in-factory explosions due to dust build up. Naturally, people became curious about what actual happens inside the factory where their iPhones and iPads are made and as a profiting company, Apple dislikes any negative press. In an effort to turn the news about their company from negative to positive, Apple granted ABC’s Nightline reporter Billy Weir full access to every machine and employee inside the factory.
In a preview to his investigation, Weir wrote that he believes the reason he was finally granted access inside Foxconn was a result of the recent explosions inside the factory and suicides committed by Foxconn employees. Not only did Apple invite Weir and his camera crew inside, but also members of the Fair Labor Association (FLA). The FLA assessed the working conditions and mental conditions of the workers. Their report and analysis will be released sometime in March hopefully extending to the original story. I would expect more articles to be produced once these reports are released in an effort to extend and spread news relating to Apple.
I first heard about this story through Yahoo News one day when I was browsing for something interesting to read. I watched the three-minute preview clip aimed at grabbing people’s attention so they would watch the full story the next night and it definitely caught my interest. Then I proceeded to read Billy Weir’s introduction and background story about why he was doing this news story. At the time I was unaware of the explosions and suicides that brought the negative attention to Apple. Like many of my peers, I assume, I was also unaware of Foxconn and the mass production of Apple products that take place there. I knew the production of these products had to be taking place in China like most of the products I consume on a regular basis but I did not realize to what scale and magnitude. Nor did I know that most of the production is completed by hand, not by machine.
With my interest spiked, I sat down and watched ABC’s Nightline special title “Inside Apple” not knowing what exactly to expect. What I saw was row after row after row of young Chinese workers doing the same mindless task over and over and over. One worker will insert the tiny camera into the iPad while another with dust off the touch screen and another will package the finish product. Thousands hands are required to make one iPad and they must repeat this process for twelve long hours a day to keep up with demands. They are paid on average $1.75 an hour and most employees live in dorms attached to the factory where rent is cheap. The most common complaints among workers when interviewed were low wages, crowded living conditions, tiredness, and boredom. When Weir addressed the recent suicides with the boss at Foxconn, he said his company’s suicide rate is lower than the national average in China and that Apple executives took measures to ensure the workers are mentally stable. Giant nets now hang on the sides of the buildings to prevent people from jumping out of the windows and workers now take surveys (on iPads, ironic?) to assess their mental conditions.
Although there was no striking evidence that the factory workers were severally mistreated, I was curious to find out what other people thought. I thought that this news story might spark some sort of nation wide debate about being informed consumers and how big American companies treat their workers in China. Unfortunately, the big debate I was hoping for never happened. But the story did not go completely unnoticed. I did find some reputable sources talking about it the next day.
While it did not make the headlines, the New York Times and the Huffington Post acknowledged this story. The Huffington Post mostly summarized the episode of Nightline, which did not help me in my quest to find the next great debate. However, the New York Times went deeper into the story. With the title reading “Pressure, Chinese and Foreign Drive Change at Foxconn,” the article discusses why cameras were allowed inside the factory and how it will impact Apple in the future.
That great debate that I was looking for, well I found it, from one hundred passionate and opinionated people leaving comments online. Comments range from bitterly sarcastic to aggressively angry. I view these comments as countering not only the authors of this article, but also Apple as a company. Some people argue that outsourcing will always exist due to cheap labor and heavy demand from the United States and others are outraged at the working conditions in the factory. Commenter A.M. Garrett was affected by the news story as he comments,
I still have the first iPhone. I remember being so happy to get one as a gift. Now I can't think of having that same feeling about buying a new one, knowing what I know now about how it's made. So I'll stick with the 3G. Why do we need new phones every few years anyway?
Garrett is upset with the way iPhones are made and finds consumption of every new model unnecessary. However, Troy from Utah disagrees and counters Garrett as he comments directly at Garrett, “I'm not sure I understand "knowing what I know now about how it's made". Having lived in China I can tell you that Foxconn is at the top of the heap of factory jobs.” Although reading comments is not a traditional source for news media, it is interesting, informative, and often funny to read what these commenters have to say.
Another non-traditional news source that covered this story is The Daily Show. This show is a half hour news show satirizing current events, tradition news media, and political figures. Host Jon Stewart reports the story in a seven-minute segment calling Foxconn “Fear Factory.” The Daily Show and other shows similar to it are now becoming more popular, especially for my generation, and some of my classmates cite it as a major source where they get their news.
Because we rely so heavily on the Internet in today’s society, the way in which we get news has changed drastically from the beginnings of the news. Jeff Jarvis compares the old press sphere to the new press sphere in several diagrams that make the differences quite obvious. Before, there was only the press reporting on the news and that is the only source people had for getting the news. However, now there is a multitude of sources people use such as online blogs, online newspapers, television shows, friends, and so on. I think the new press sphere is accurate and actually creates better-informed citizens because the news is now so easily accessible. Although there were not as many follow-up articles investigating Foxconn and Apple as I had hoped, there was quite a bit of discussion online. I think one reason this story did not get more attention was because the Nightline episode was not conclusive about if the workers are treated fairly or not.
I continued my search for information and comments on this story and about two weeks after it first aired I did find some controversies. From the Tech section of the Huffington Post I found that there are reports stating that Foxconn hid some of their younger workers when the cameras where there. Venture Beat reports that Foxconn technically did not break any laws by simply relocating their youngest workers to different departments. The real issue becomes how those workers are treated when there are not cameras present. The Washington Post quoting an Apple representative stating, “A spokesperson said that the company insists on safety and respect for workers, and that… suppliers ‘must live up to (our) requirements if they want to keep doing business with Apple.”’ I believe this story will continue to be extended when the FLA reports are released and that those reports will ultimately determine if Apple mistreats its factory workers.
As new reports continue to be released, this story will continue to grow and gain momentum until people are satisfied with the results. Due to the new press sphere and all of the debates online through blogs and commenting though, this story along with others may never truly have an end. The Internet makes it easy to forward, extend, and counter articles and story with just a few clicks of the mouse. For these reasons, the rate at which news is passed around and received is faster than ever and the depths of stories are thick. All it takes is a quick preview or catchy headline to attract readers who will follow a story from birth all the way through the end. I believe the Internet as revolutionized the way we receive the news and we are all better off and more informed because of it.
Bibliography
Barboza, David, and Charles Duhigg. "Pressure, Chinese and Foreign, Drive Change at
Foxconn." New York Times. 19 Feb. 2012. Web. <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/technology/pressures-drive-change-at-chinas-electronics-giant-foxconn.html?_r=1&ref=technology>.
"Fear Factory." The Daily Show. Web. 01 Mar. 2012.
<http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/mon-january-16-2012/fear-factory>.
Post, The Huffington. "Nightline Tours Apple Supplier Foxconn: Get An
Unprecedented Look At The Factory (VIDEO)." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 22 Feb. 2012. Web. 25 Feb. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/22/nightline-apple-supplier-foxconn_n_1293393.html>.
Story, Watch The Video above for the Full. "Report: Foxconn Hid Teen Workers Before
Inspection (VIDEO)." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 23 Feb. 2012. Web. 06 Mar. 2012. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/23/apples-foxconn-hid-teen-workers_n_1297515.html>.
Weir, Billy. "Inside Apple." ABC News. ABC News Network. Web. 06 Mar. 2012.
<http://abcnews.go.com/International/slideshow/inside-apples-factories-china-15750239>.
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