NY Times Journalists Strike in Solidarity with Chinese Counterparts; Nobody Notices

NEW YORK CITY, NY -- (CNN -- Circulation News Network) -- The New York Times has suffered recent setbacks in popularity among readers. Facing allegations of bias, ideological prejudice, and sloppy journalism, most famously in the recent stories of Judith Miller and Jayson Blair, the "Gray Lady" has faced tough times and steadily declining readership.

Therefore this week, in an attempt to both improve its image and present itself as a beacon of press freedom, the staff of the New York Times went on strike as a sign of solidarity with their counterparts in China. The strike by Chinese reporters as protest against censorship by the Communist party leadership in Beijing has gained international attention and widespread media coverage.

The New York Times companion strike, however, has not achieved a comparable amount of publicity. Carrying a placard saying "We Are Still Relevant, Mindless Masses! Buy My Newspaper, You Ignorant Right-Leaning Fascist!" one distraught Times journalist told CNN, "Nobody even noticed our strike! Look at all these people going by. They're not even looking at us. They're all rushing home to their computers, to catch up on news via Instapundit and Technorati and all those...those...blogs!"

In an exclusive phone interview with CNN, a Chinese journalist fighting for press freedom said, "Well, we appreciate all the publicity for our struggle against censorship and imprisonment by the autocratic Beijing media lords. But really, New York Times, please don't cheapen our fight by saying that you care. Still, I do have to say thanks and xie-xie to that paper for providing the world with great wrapping for fish."