By David Bandurski — Unhappy China (中国不高兴), a now best-selling book by several Chinese academics arguing in Darwinian terms that China should carve out for itself a pre-eminent role in world affairs, has been the focus of much coverage outside China, and of fierce debate within China. [Homepage Image: A recent issue of Shanghai’s Xinmin […]
By David Bandurski — Reuters reported 20 minutes ago the news of the detention of environmentalist Tan Zuoren in Sichuan, so we’ll post now an evolving translation of a personal e-mail we received early this morning from a prominent Chinese filmmaker familiar with the case. Prior to his detention, Tan had been conducting independent research […]
By David Bandurski — Tibet is a touchy tinderbox of a subject — not to mention an incredibly complex one — and so we have long avoided mention of the “T” word on our project Website. Sifting through Chinese news coverage, however, is our raison d’être at the China Media Project. And as we’ve gone […]
By David Bandurski — It is no big secret that policies made with the best of intentions can be foolishly unworkable, and perhaps party leaders in the city of Guangzhou should be given the benefit of the doubt — about their intentions, that is. Earlier this week, top city leaders in Guangzhou rolled out measures […]
By David Bandurski — The dynamics of control and change in China’s media are enough to leave even more experienced observers feeling disoriented. China intermittently yields up stories like this one and this one, which tell us things are going from bad to worse, and then puzzlers like this one, which tell us China is […]
By David Bandurski — Not long ago, I sat like a fly on the wall and listened to a group of Chinese editors talking about the political challenges they had faced in 2008. One young editor spoke enthusiastically about how journalists might make some headway covering the topic of history as pursuing hard news became […]
By David Bandurski — With a new administration in Washington, more attention has turned to America’s international relationships and to possible mood changes in foreign policy. As could be expected, there is enlivened discussion about the nature of the U.S.-China relationship, although this has so far turned mostly to such prickly economic issues as trade […]
By David Bandurski — The South China Morning Post created quite a stir at our office last week when it reported a 6.6 billion US dollar Chinese government program to fund international ventures undertaken by state media. One foreign journalist after another came fishing for soundbytes about how the likes of People’s Daily and China […]
By Emma Lupano — For much of this year, Guangdong’s Southern Metropolis Daily has borne the brunt of attacks against China’s liberal press. But the latest publication to take the heat is Yanhuang Chunqiu (炎黄春秋), a liberal history-related journal regarded generally as one of China’s most outspoken publications. News surfaced this month that the journal […]
By David Bandurski — When it comes to responsible global behavior on poverty alleviation, development assistance, resource conservation and environmental protection, China tops the charts. That is, according to a recent report from the government’s own scientific research institution, the Chinese Academy of Sciences. But China’s number one ranking is not the real shocker. Are […]
