Comments on: Practising what they preach? China’s journalists’ association on bun conundrum

By: michael

michael — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 23:35:43 +0000

I was surprised to find that many of the reporters at China Daily were graduates of prestigious journalism schools in the UK and the US (City University, Columbia etc). And yet they certainly hid their lights under bushels in editorial meetings, doing the proverbial rabbit in headlights impression when it came to suggestions for stories. As someone who tried and failed to get into journalism school it was very frustrating to see those lucky enough to have gained a place to be such lame ducks.

By: Chris O'Brien

Chris O'Brien — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 02:04:38 +0000

Nerys, I was about to say I’ll see if anyone can recall your teachings but you’re right - don’t want to give anyone ideas. Actually, we have been asked to give lectures from time to time (just not to the newcomers during the political ideology course) but after 18 months we now steadfastly refuse on the grounds that, due to so many external restrictions on the way the whole department operates, all the suggestions we would like to make (like picking up the telephone once in a while) would never be put into practice. Also you can end up giving the same lecture to an intern and a senior editor with 30 years’ experience.

Actually, most of the journalists already know how to write news stories. The problem is the pitiful material they have to work with which stems from the fact that they were told a year ago that they are “editors” not “reporters”. Some people are very good at getting round this problem though. Personally I think we should just give lectures to President Tian Congming every week.

By: Nerys

Nerys — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 15:22:39 +0000

When I was a “foreign polisher” at Xinhua in the 1990s, I was forced to give lectures on newswriting once a fortnight so thank your lucky stars your offers have been turned down! They were always packed though - I like to think it was because I was so entertaining and the exercises I gave the journalists were such fun.

By: MAC

MAC — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 08:51:11 +0000

Honestly, I feel sorry for all the honest baozi makers out there whose business has probably plunged. I already barely ever get to eat them because my fiance doesn’t like the smell, now I’m pretty much guaranteed to have to go behind her back.

By: cat

cat — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 18:01:14 +0000

Trouble is, even if the report was fake, the idea’s out there now. How many dodgy food sellers thought “that’s a good idea, I’ll do that”?

By: Chris O'Brien

Chris O'Brien — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:45:56 +0000

David, you always knew how to appeal to a wide audience! I’m not sure I can motivate myself to explain the world of “Stan Steer”, “Dave Crow” and “leucipottomy”. Suffice to say, life as a Teletext Racing Journalist was far weirder than that of a Xinhua polisher. (By the way, you knew as much as I did about who was going to win at Southwell, you, as a loyal reader, submitted a letter about leucipottomy demanding an answer and Dave Crow was the abstract ideal of an opinionated racing columnist.)

By: Chris O'Brien

Chris O'Brien — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 15:29:08 +0000

I always thought those student types in the Forbidden City were trying to sell me art when they asked:
1) Where are you from?
2) How long have you been in China?
3) Do you like Chinese food?
Those cunning China Daily reporters.

By: Dave

Dave — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 14:26:18 +0000

And it’s not just the Chinese media who knowingly pull the wool over their readership’s unwitting eyes. If I might note that on the UK’s foremost horse-racing service the tips on the 15th June 2005 from Southwell were not painstakingly pored over by Stan Steer, but by a jumped up civil servant with precious little knowledge of the geegees! And the letter published the following week enquiring as to where one could find a good leucipottomist nowadays, was, ladies and gentleman, little more than a ruse. And as if this wasn’t enough (and those of a weak disposition please look away now) Dave Crow does not exist - Pure fiction!

The Great British Public has been well and truly hoodwinked, and now the cat is out of the bag may I be the first to call for a wide-reaching inquiry into the dishonest and lazy practices of Teletext Journalists.

By: michael

michael — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 10:06:15 +0000

The reporters at China Daily certainly fabricated parts of their stories, usually out of laziness or due to them lacking the confidence/skills to go out and gather original material. Vox pops, for example, were invariably made up. How many times did I edit articles which quoted foreigners praising China’s “delicious cuisine” and expressing admiration for China’s deep culture.