Chinese officials rip Obama interview from newspaper

Beijing — Even after he left Beijing, President Obama apparently fell afoul of the Chinese censors.

An exclusive interview he gave to Southern Weekend -- a weekly supplement to the Southern Metropolis Daily newspaper -- was published in Thursday’s editions, but the page that carried the interview was removed from many copies. And the official online edition of the newspaper had no coverage of the event.

In the short interview, Obama did not address any controversial issues, answering instead bland questions about China’s economic development, his love for basketball and trade relations.

The Southern Metropolis was chosen by the White House for the presidential interview because of its reputation for being the hardest-hitting newspaper in China. The newspaper, published in Guangzhou, was not available on most newsstands Thursday.