On Saturday, ABCNews reported that Apple had given Nightline anchor Bill Weir access to supplier factories in China. ABC has just released a sneak preview of what viewers can expect from the newscast, scheduled to air Tuesday, February 21.
ABC was granted permission to visit its supplier companies in China after Weir had been attempting to gain access for years.
This recent transparency may be due to the overwhelming publicity that Apple affiliated factories are getting regarding their fair labor violations and human rights abuses.
According to Weir, Apple contacted him directly with a surprising proposal.
“They wondered if ‘Nightline’ was interested in seeing their iPhone, iPad and MacBook final assembly lines at Foxconn during a first-ever audit by the Fair Labor Association.”
“In a three-golf-cart convoy, both Apple and Foxconn reps took us around to a half dozen production lines in Shenzhen and Chengdu, and there were always five to six people with us as we toured the factories and dorms. But aside from suggesting a visit to the counseling center or canteen, they never steered us to interviews and never interrupted.”
The one-and-a-half preview is just a teaser of the full story that will air on a special edition of Nightline on Tuesday, February 21 at 11:35 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.