The China Digest, Spotlite and Carroll Prescott Lunt in the Solitary Island

When I compiled my history of the foreign press in Shanghai (Through the Looking Glass: China’s Foreign Press Corps from Opium to Mao – in English here and Chinese here) I didn’t include the China Digest. As far as I know (and I don’t know much) the Digest was edited by an American, Mr. Carroll Prescott Lunt (born 1889), and was published after the Sino-Japanese War had broken out in Shanghai during the “Solitary Island” period” (1937-1941). Lunt was notoriously pro-Japanese, a regular visitor to Japan after 1937 and who had briefly edited the pro-Tokyo Far Eastern Review in Peking and was also one of the editors of the China’s Who’s Who. Lunt had previously been a poetry buff, publishing a novel called His Chinese Idol in 1921 (which got a rotten review in the New York Times) and then a collection of translated Chinese poetry, Jade Chips, in the 1920s. He also published a self-help book, How to Live with Epilepsy The magazine was generally considered to be pro-Japanese and was supported largely by adverts from Japanese companies in Shanghai during its run. Spotlite was an incorporated supplement within the Digest I believe. It was generally considered to be well edited and printed fetauring news articles from a variety of foreign media in Asia, Europe and America. It declared itself neutral though observers at the time (including the influential China Critic publication) questioned this, given its advertising base.

Spotlite had its offices at No.18 Bund. No.18 was the Chartered Bank of India Building, home to what is now Standard Chartered Bank (built 1923) and now a confection of ridiculously over-priced shops and restaurants. While the magnificent staircase still exists the vast majority of the interior has been long gutted to provide a home to nonsense like Bar Rouge and other wanna-be locations.