In the field of media criticism, it pays to be picky about language. Around touchy issues of sovereignty and legitimacy, journalists frequently navigate intractable disputes where no term is truly "objective". A wise man once said, if you want to create social change, then it is of paramount importance to identify "who are [your] enemies [and] who are [your] friends?" But … [Read more...] about “China’s Tibet”: A Perfectly Normal Turn of Phrase
language
Human Rights in Ancient China
The biggest hindrance of the West and the rest of the world in understanding China is the perceived lack of human rights tradition in China. China is an old civilization and a civilization cannot continue to prosper and grow if this most fundamental issue is never addressed. The Zhou dynasty is probably the most formative in that it is during that period that the modern Chinese … [Read more...] about Human Rights in Ancient China
How Bad or Good is Chinese TV?
Today also happened to be the day before new year (除夕)in the lunar calendar. I would like to wish everybody a happy, healthy and prosperous dragon year. Instead of the usual heavy subject matter, I would like to talk about something more light hearted. I am in a holiday mood today so I will address some concern about the lack of creativity in TV broadcasting in China. Instead … [Read more...] about How Bad or Good is Chinese TV?
Hunanese vs Hakka
Does all Chinese dialect group have the same representation in politics historically? The question first appeared to me when I read Li Guangyao's 李光耀(Lee Kuan Yew) autobiography, The Singapore Story and From Third World to First: The Singapore Story. He mentioned that Hakka is disproportionately represented in politics in Singapore and other Chinese communities. At the writing … [Read more...] about Hunanese vs Hakka
All your Schadenfreude are belong to us?
Lecturing others amounts to schadenfreude. Wait. What? An interesting phenomenon seems to be in the air. With the current financial crisis in America and unrest in Britain, it appears that multiple western media outlets cannot resist the temptation to interpret China's and other countries' responses in terms of "schadenfreude". Although not as amusing as … [Read more...] about All your Schadenfreude are belong to us?