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Sign up with Google Sign up with FacebookQ: Are publicity stunts the only way to get things done?
Hi!
First the 12 people who threatened to commit suicide got to meet with some officials then 200 villagers got offiicals to investigate a case of corruption. Is getting in the national news a way to bypass corrupt officials and force them into action? and does this mean that new media is granting people some semblance of control?
It sure seems like that. Chinese people avoid confrontation by nature, so the average Chinese person will just go with the flow, and the rest won't stand up for him if he tries to challenge something. Getting on the news seems to be the way to get things done.
jetfire9000:
What you said seems to reign true only so long as the confrontation is one that has risen from within the structure as opposed to one that resulted from an outside consequence- ie, an internal confrontation vs. external one.
For example, there won't be many Chinese people raising their voices against other Chinese if they know that those certain Chinese are more powerful than they are. Power and status still accounts for most social relations here, although it seems (perhaps for propaganda purposes) that morality is receiving more attention than before.
However, if there is a foreigner that Chinese have managed to perceive as an annoyance, in that situation even the bystanders will quickly join in despite having no knowledge or understanding of the situation.
I don't know if it's the only way, but it certainly does seem to be an effective way a lot of the time.
I think stories have to be approved before they make it onto the news. Unless there happens to be a foreign journalist there of course.
From books I have read, I believe senior journalists are the eyes and ears of the party bosses. Local bosses might try to cover things up, but once an approved journalist gets wind of anything it can go right to the top, putting the local party people deep in the proverbial.
If it makes the news, the local bosses will be squirming, that's for sure.
Chinese journalists are very powerful people. Good on them. Even if a story does not make it to the news, you can be pretty sure the people at the top hear it.
laowaigentleman:
I'm rather perplexed as to how the news is gathered here. A friend of mine worked as a journalist here and she told me that it's a tough job because there as so many competing agencies trying to get out to where the news is first.
I was surprised because I always thought that news here was centrally controlled, which it indeed is.
The fact that news gathering is "farmed out" to third parties suggests the obvious fact that investigative journalism just can't happen here and the pressure to sensationalize must be enormous.
Combine this with the lack of media savviness among the population and you can finally understand why in a country of so many people, no-one seems to be able to find any reliable information by themselves. I would love to do a test showing people an array of true and false stories in the news lately and see how many can't discern which are true and which are false.
Surely a student can take me up on this as part of their journalism major dissertation or something?
ScotsAlan:
There was a Guangzhou newspaper that done some investigative journalism a few years back..... and the newspaper was done too.
I think they jailed the journalist and sacked the management team. I can remember what it was about, but I won't say here.
At around the same time, I had a pleasant afternoon drinking beer with a couple of reporters who were covering an event my wife was involved in. It turned out one of the reporters dad knows my MIL. One thing for sure, these reporters were real smart cookies. They knew exactly what was going on.
They also knew all the "banned" stuff. They have to know it, because how else would they know what is ok and what is not.
Lord_hanson:
@ScotsAlan, that is the journalist who was sent to be tried somewhere in a different city so the corrupt guy's guanxi could control the case, right?
laowaigentleman:
This person I spoke to became visibly uncomfortable when I even alluded ever so subtly to "impropriety" possibly occurring at all within any industry in China.
I really want to move to Guangdong and meet these kinds of people.
I lived in the south two years ago. I'm a lot more tactful than perhaps my online persona appears (speaking for myself), so my problem with living in this part of the country is that my curiosity concerning how this country works and the reaction of people to its history is totally unsated. A complete cerebral desert, is the north.
I don't intend to cause any trouble, I'd just love to move within informed circles to feel a little more stimulated.
What you said doesn't surprise me. I've just got to get away from these northern mall plebs and get some culture.
rasklnik:
-A former buddy of mine mentioned that DongBei seems to have the most patriotic, lock-step, party puppets, lei-feng puppies, while Gansu was the most anti-party province.
-I don't talk to locals any more...
laowaigentleman:
In Hunan I was surprised to be asked a lot of questions about sensitive topics. I was quite worried because when I applied to come to China, no-one said anything to me about what I can and can't say and how to deal with these kinds of things without causing problems for myself or for the students.
Perhaps the government is confident enough in the policies in place to control the opinions of people?
I don't spend much time talking to locals here. One girl asked me very directly whether I was for or against the party. I told her that I was a foreigner and that we will probably have different opinions about politics so it's better not to discuss etc etc. I usually conclude with, traditionally, topics like religion and politics are considered taboo to bring up in polite conversation.
During a private dinner party I was asked and I told someone what my views were. I am sure a lot of people know the true stories. I just don't want the burden of having to be the guy to confirm their validity as being a foreigner and saying those kinds of things can potentially come back to bite you on the arse.
Social media can not be controlled. Stuff like this leaks out on social media and forces the state controlled media to acknowledge it .
Which is why they are pushing to link your phone number with your id number. Wechat is connected to your number. They will be able to track you down easily. Less people will re post stories like this
laowaigentleman:
Do you think this kind of policy can be implemented successfully? I sure as hell hope not.
Man, they suck here.
ScotsAlan:
I cant remember the exact number, but if a social media post is reposted a certain amount of times then the author is considered a journalist. The author can then be in trouble, because he/she is not approved to be a journalist.
I think you'll find that bribery and arse-kissing go a long way here too.