Cathay Pacific apologises for inflight Family Guy episode with Tiananmen Square scene

Cathay Pacific has apologised for airing an episode of the American series Family Guy that features a scene depicting Tiananmen Square, following a complaint that it could violate Hong Kong’s national security laws.

The scene, which references the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, shows the character Peter Griffin standing beside a protester in front of Chinese tanks, mirroring the iconic “Tank Man” image.

The airline quickly removed the episode from its inflight entertainment and promised to improve oversight of its content after a complaint was made by a social media user.

“We emphasise that the programme’s content does not represent Cathay Pacific’s standpoint and have immediately arranged to have the programme removed as soon as possible,” a spokesman for the carrier told South China Morning Post.

The Tiananmen Square massacre is a highly sensitive subject in China and Hong Kong where references to it are strictly censored. “Tank Man” was an unknown person pictured standing in front of a line of tanks during the 1989 Beijing crackdown.

The episode in question, titled Death Has a Shadow, has a scene where the character Peter Griffin is shown standing next to a man in Tiananmen Square as tanks approach.

Hong Kong’s flagship carrier said that it had regularly given instructions to its third-party service provider responsible for selecting inflight entertainment content to ensure it met company standards.

It also said the incident was promptly communicated to the provider, highlighting its seriousness.

Cathay Pacific said it urged the provider to conduct a thorough investigation.

The Independent has reached out to Cathay Pacific for a comment.

For thirty years, Hong Kong held an annual vigil to mourn the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre, often drawing hundreds of thousands.

However, after the 2019 pro-democracy protests, Hong Kong and Chinese authorities implemented a harsh crackdown on dissent under new national security laws.

Since 2020, those organising or attending Tiananmen vigils have faced prosecution, though officials claim that private commemorations are still allowed.

On 23 December 2021, workers at the University of Hong Kong removed the “Pillar of Shame”, a sculpture commemorating the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. The removal took place in the early hours of the morning, with barriers put up to conceal their actions. The statue had been installed in 1997 and was the last public reminder in Hong Kong of the crackdown.