The folks over at Chinesepod have once again done an amazing job on a subject that, while probably not relevant to everyday life in China, is entirely practical to watching X-Files reruns dubbed in Mandarin.

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An awesome video, and if anyone knows where I can get a “Hip Hop Ain’t Dead… It Lives in Tainan” shirt send me an email. According to his wikipedia entry I would think there are some strong pro-Taiwan statements in this song if I could understand it.

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There are advantages to having a strong central government, one of them being that you can make decisions fast, and without consulting anyone. Thus the most recent incident of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) banning of a plastic surgery show in Guangdong province, 2007 MyLike Date with Beauty. It was rumored to be canceled due to it scenes of exposed breasts and blood. Just to be sensible here, I am sure that the breasts were pixelated and not clearly visible. Secondly, if you have ever watched any Chinese news program you know that they do not shy away from showing blood from accident victims or people in a hospital, and in this way it is more graphic then what is shown on American television. And I know that there is a similar show that is on Nanjing’s local television stations, and have to assume that other cities have programs like this.

So are these reasons for canceling the show bullshit? I would think that they most likely are. The Xinhua piece cites some of the items that are not allowed to be shown on television:

Broadcasters are not allowed to design, produce or broadcast programs or events that run against common ethics and morals, that blaspheme science and culture, or that infringe upon individual privacy, said the statement.

Those who breach the regulation will be severely punished.

Excellently vague rules that can be applied however the censors see fit. A high ranking censorship figure gets word in his smoke-filled Beijing office that a show in Guangdong features blood and naked breasts, and that can not be allowed to stay on the air and corrupt the Chinese people’s ethics and morals! Or is something more personal, or someone not getting the proper bribes? As with the censorship of websites, we on the outside can only really guess as to how these things work.

Another situation occurred only a few weeks ago in which SARFT stepped in and canceled a reality dating show in mid-production. Danwei does an excellent job of covering this incident, so if you wish to know more about it I would suggest reading their version. But I would like to repost a section of the SARFT public announcement that they feature:

[the program] seriously strayed from the mission of the competition, and immersed itself in stunts and sensationalism. Judge selection, competition stages, panelist behavior, musical content, planning and management, and broadcast supervision all exhibited major lapses. This was detrimental to the image of TV media and caused harmful social influences; there was a fierce backlash from the general public. At the Chongqing Radio and TV Bureau and Chongqing TV, the program editors and persons in charge lack a strong sense of responsibility and guidance. They have professional shortcomings, and there are holes in their control over content, all of which led to the outbreak of the above problems. They are hereby criticized by national notice.

The Notice said that the design of the stages of the “Shock to the Heart” competition were crude and ugly, the judges had gaffes in their words and actions, the design of the program was not up to common standards of artistry, program content was vulgar in tone, and the song performances were mean and tacky. CQTV was irresponsible in its live broadcast and did not take any effective measures to control the chaotic scene; by letting it play out, it abandoned its responsibility as a broadcaster. By not reporting this situation to the State Administration, the Chongqing Radio and TV Bureau failed in its management.

There is nothing quite like an old time public criticism. The part that is most interesting to me is the second paragraph, where the reasons for the show being canceled are laid out. This is mostly a condemnation of sloppiness and ugly design. In other words, the objections were to the management and aesthetic choices of the show, things that, as far as I can tell, have nothing to do with offending morals, or any of the other rules that I have seen posted regarding SARFT’s usual decisions.

The CCP censors can easily make a quick decision and shut down anything at anytime. In certain cases it is needed, as with their efforts to ban commercials for harmful dieting and breast enhancement products. And at least when they can make a pretense of censorship due to moral reason, as with the plastic surgery show, then they are fufilling the classic role of the morality censor. But looking at the whole of these decisions, it seems like something else is at play here. I personally propose a combination of personal bias and corruption, mixed with a fear of Western decadence and of losing control in an increasingly connected world.

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Paul Theroux’s Riding the Iron Rooster, which details his travels throughout China by train, was written almost 20 years ago but most of it’s observations about China are still mostly dead on. Although one reason why it remains so insightful is because a lot of the problems and hassles of traveling in China have not gone away with the rise in economic power. Here is an excellent observation about tourist destinations:

Sight-seeing is one of the more doubtful aspects of travel, and in China it is one of the least rewarding things a traveler can do - primarily a distraction and seldom even an amusement, It has all the boredom and ritual of a pilgrimage and none of the spiritual benefits.

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Being stranded between apartments and jobs, in a month long limbo really, and being forced to watch what television is being shown in the house, I have had to see a lot of the Today show lately. For those not in the United States, the Today show is shown on NBC and is one of those insipid morning shows that every major network here has, and contain some of the most banal, inoffensive drivel that is on all of television. But every day this show has featured a “China Rising” segment, featuring USA Olympic hopefuls, and talking heads in Beijing saying how important the Olympics is to the soul of the Chinese people or some other such nonsense.

In all seriousness, one thing that I was looking forward to when getting back home was not having to face, day after day, coverage of the 2008 Olympics games. Do they realize that nothing will be happening until next year. But it is inescapable, I will have to hear about this until September 2008.

Please, can the Olympics be over so we can all move on to other news about China?

And you should vote for Jenn’s “Year of the Pig” photo. It is super good.

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We had taken the train from Nanjing to Beijing the night before, which was both longer and more unpleasant then expected. There is a express train that runs between the two cities, leaving around 10:30 and getting in at about 8:30. And while certainly not high class, by taking the hard sleeper you are guaranteed at least a few hours sleep. However, even though we attempted to buy tickets 10 days in advance, the hard sleeper tickets for that train were all sold out, leaving only the expensive soft sleeper and the hard seats. As either one is not a great option, we were forced to take an earlier non-express train, that left 8 hours earlier and arrived at the same time. And since it was non-express that means that people were getting on and off all night, and of course being inconsiderate bastards about it.

So needless to say that we arrived in Beijing exhausted and angry. We struggled with out large suitcases, including my cheap Chinese suitcase with was falling apart more and more by the second. Fighting through the crowds we approached the Beijing train station taxi stand. Now at most train stations I have been to in China they try to organize people and cabs into a semi-efficient method, probably one of the most organized things that you will encounter in China. The exception being in Beijing where it is a gigantic free-for-all.

Eventually we we made our way to a cab. The driver, instead of helping us with our massive baggage, continually demanded to know where we were going (什么地方). I had the address in my pocket, and repeatedly told him that I would give him the address after we had loaded everything into his cab. As I was struggling to fit our luggage into his trunk that was already crammed with garbage, Jenn loaded our small suitcase into the backseat, and in the process got some mud on his seat covers. At this point the driver flips out, screaming at us that we need to give him 200 RMB to have his seat covers cleaned. Obviously this is a ridiculously high fee, and he is trying to get money out of us because we are foreigners. Other cab drivers come over, and as Jenn is screaming at him about the price, I am yelling at him to open the trunk, because I was afraid he would try to drive away with our stuff.

Finally an older driver came over, who I believe felt bad for us, and told the driver that 20 RMB is a fair amount to get everything cleaned. Which then lead the old guy and the driver into an argument, as the greedy bastard said that he needed at least 50. Between the two of them came to a price of 40 RMB as the lowest they would go. Insert 10 more minutes of yelling into this debacle, and we had to pay this asshole 40 RMB, twice as much as it will cost to actually clean his cab. And we had to take the subway, with 3 20 pound suitcases and two hiking backpacks, because all the other drivers at the station refused to take us.

I realize that we did in fact get his cab dirty, and would have paid the extra 20 RMB to have it cleaned. But I also know that he will not bother to get his seat covers dry cleaned, and will just pocket the money. And this is also another example of how something that should be easy to accomplish, taking a cab, turns into a terrible ordeal. And worst part is that we had almost no money left, and this forced us to eat very little for our last few meals in China.

Does Beijing plan on doing something about these problems before the Olympics? I don’t know if their public service advertisements are getting through, as Beijing remains the most frustrating place that I have traveled to in China.

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