According to Chinese media reports, the ad appeared in the New York Times print edition on Monday, announcing that Chen would host a charity luncheon⁴（午宴） at New York Central Park's Loeb Boathouse on June 25 for 1,000 "poor and destitute⁵（穷困的） Americans". Each participant would also receive $300.

 

Chen, who is known for theatrical⁶（戏剧的，夸张的） philanthropic（博爱的） stunts⁷, has a photo of himself in the ad placed side-by-side with a picture of Lei Feng, a Chinese soldier from the Mao-era who is celebrated⁸ as a selfless model citizen. The title above the images says, "China's 'Lei Feng for a new era.'"

 

Those who wish to join the luncheon need to RSVP via a Hotmail email address.

 

Chen said he was hoping the lunch would show the US that there are Chinese philanthropists.

 

"There are many wealthy Chinese billionaires but most of them gained their wealth from market speculation⁹ and colluding with（勾结） government officials while destroying the environment. I can't bear the sight of it," Chen told the South China Morning Post.

 

Making his fortune from recycling domestic waste and construction materials in China, Chen has been in the media spotlight¹⁰ in recent years for his dramatic publicity¹¹ stunts promoting philanthropic causes. He arrived at the scene of the 2013 Lushan earthquake in Sichuan just hours after the disaster took place and personally handed out cash to the victims.

 

Chen has also tried unsuccessfully to buy the New York Times as part of his ongoing¹² campaign to develop closer ties between US and China.

 

He recently expressed a desire to reignite（再次点燃） discussions to buy the paper's opinionsection and fill it with articles about environmental protection and charity.

 

Founder¹³ of the Huangpu Renewable Resources Utilization¹⁴ Group, Chen has donated hundreds of millions of dollars to various charitable causes over the years and has made it more than once onto Forbes' list of Asia's leading philanthropists.

 

But not everyone is taken with Chen's flashy generosity¹⁵.

 

Jeremy Goldkorn, director of Chinese media research firm Danwei, says: "Chen is a clown whose so-called philanthropy appears to consist entirely¹⁶ of self-promotional stunts like giving handouts of cash in Taipei and New York, and cans of air to people in China."

 

Goldkorn has also tweeted that Chen is the "greatest insult to the Chinese people."

 

Other critics find it difficult to take Chen seriously when his English namecard lists an absurdly long string of self-aggrandizing titles, including "Most Charismatic Philanthropist of China."

点击收听单词发音