Front Page: July 16

South Reviews explores the public mindset "getting ruthless" as Chinese society is rapidly changing. Repeatedly shocked by issues like food safety scandals, the income gap between the rich and poor, and children dying of hunger, people tend to employ apathy and moral indifference as a form a self-protection due to dysfunctional social norms. The magazine says it is the responsibility of both government and individuals to get normal social rules back on track.

New Weekly “To be rich and to be a human being” introduces a broad range of topics related to China’s wealthy, including their public image, and how they can go beyond pursuing materialism and contribute to society better by shouldering social responsibilities. It says the rich in China need to manage relations with the government, the poor, and business partners better.

The Oriental Outlook reports the reasons behind the Philippines military getting tough in the South China Sea dispute with China, suggesting that external influences of powerful countries has emboldened the country to search for a solution. The report also says the increase of defense spending in the Philippines can appease the military which plays an important role in the country’s politics.

The central picture of Beijing News shows Tang Hui, a former labor camp inmate and mother of a rape victim who was awarded 1,641 yuan ($267.20) in compensation by Hunan Provincial High People's Court, which ruled it was an "inappropriate" decision to put her in local labor camp by authorities in Yongzhou city. Tang said she wants to get her life back to normal.

Chinese actress Yao Chen giving birth to a baby boy on Monday is one of the hottest topics on Sina Weibo where she has 49 million fans. Yao’s husband, award-winning cinematographer Cao Yu, is facing possible criminal charges after he boarded a naval vessel in Taiwan recently without consent from the military authorities.

Also hugely popular on Sina Weibo is ten hot news words from Xinhua News Agency: 1. China Dream 2. Eight Rules (introduced by a meeting of China’s ruling body in December to reduce pomp, ceremony and bureaucratic visits and meetings)3. Shenzhou X spacecraft 4. Clean Your Plate Campaign which urged people to save food by not wasting anything on the dining table. 5. The most rigid traffic rule. 6. Smog everywhere 7. Lushan Earthquake 8. H7N9 bird flu; 9. Tickets of scenic spots 10. “I was here.” (A bad habit of tourists to sign a place they visit.)

A picture showing two Xiamen airline stewardesses praying before a table with sacrificial offerings of fruits and cookies and two rare Chinese characters Zheng Dian (on time), is one of the most searched stories on Baidu.com. Flight delays are a common complaint and it is clear some airlines employees will go to great lengths to be on time.

Also trending on Baidu, Internet users try to discover why surveillance cameras have been found in the abbot's room at Shaolin Temple, with one pointed at the abbot's bed. The famous temple has made no statement, but rumors said it was due to conflicts of interest in business development.

A Communist Party of China (CPC) member in Xupu, Central China's Hunan province has been expelled from the Party because he failed to take care of his sick wife or attended the burial ceremony for his father, Hunan Daily reports.

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