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International Journalismtry—broadcast on China CentralTelevision, the nationwide government-owned-and-operatednetwork—isa nightly feature called“Focus” that pretty much followsthe format of the CBS newsmagazine“60 Minutes.” To be sure, “Focus” isnot as doggedly aggressive, cleverand irreverent as “60 Minutes,” andit doesn’t use the slick productiontechniques we see on “Dateline,”“20/20” or “60 Minutes.” But its reportson smuggling, environmentalproblems, kickbacks to governmentbureaucrats, police brutality andother skullduggery draw an estimatedaudience of300 million, a figurethat would make anAmerican networkexecutive drool.What’s more, PremierZhu Rongji hasencouraged governmentofficials towatch the program,a powerful endorsement that hascreated a multiplier effect throughoutthe country. The success of “Focus”has stimulated local televisionorganizations to create similar programs.It has also inspired onceunthinkablethreats against powerfulbureaucrats. “I’m going to tell‘Focus’ about you” is becoming apublic tradition. Sometimes, I’mtold, you can see a long line of angrycitizens outside the “Focus” office inBeijing, waiting to lodge their complaints.Watchdog journalism in theChinese media is still sporadic. Thenationally distributed SouthernWeekend has acquired a reputationfor pursuing what in China might beconsidered unorthodox stories, suchas coverage of the high number ofsuicides among women in rural areas.A senior editor at that newspaperworries that the traditional CommunistParty practice of putting thepositive spin on news can give riseto a public optimism that might notbe warranted and raise hopes thatmight be unrealistic. In Tianjin, theeditors of The Evening News newspaperidentify specific problems ofpublic concern, then ask appropriategovernment officials to come totheir office and explain how they aredealing with the problem.The Next StagesEarlier this year, Strategy and Management,a journal that is widely readby thousands of officials and scholars,carried a long, detailed article aboutsocial and economic problems relatedto the construction of Three GorgesDam, a project started and stronglysupported by the still very powerfulThe media still pretty much reflect thegovernment view.…certainly no newspaperis going to attack the PRC hierarchy, atleast not under current circumstances.former Premier Li Peng. In Chongqingin January, the local media were providingbanner headlines about a majorcorruption story that involved the collapseof a pedestrian bridge that killedsome 40 people. Shoddy constructionand payoffs to bureaucrats were involved,and the media were unrestrainedin their reporting on this tragicscandal.None of these observations shouldbe taken to mean that freedom of information,as Americans understand it, isflourishing in China. The media stillpretty much reflect the governmentview. There is still a ban on satellitedishes. Outsiders are not allowed toown and publish independent newspapers,much less start television orradio operations. And certainly nonewspaper is going to attack the PRChierarchy, at least not under currentcircumstances.Still, significant changes are takingplace. The government has cut Internetaccess rates in half and is offering freeinstallation of a second phone line inresidences. Why? The Ministry of InformationIndustry said the changes weremade because “of increasing complaintsfrom consumers.”As for access to the World WideWeb, the government operates thecountry’s Internet Service Provider systemsand filters out selected material,though on a somewhat puzzling basis.For example, it’s difficult to get the onlineeditions of The New York Timesand The Washington Post through theofficial ISP’s but easy to call up the LosAngeles Times or the Chicago Tribune.Most British newspapers, including theFinancial Times, are accessible. In anycase, a group of American journalistswho recently visited China was told byAmerican technical experts in Beijingthat anyone withbasic knowledgeabout the Internetcan get access tonews from the outsidewithout muchtrouble. And accordingto an editor atone of Shanghai’slargest newspapers,by using a government operatedInternet service provider called ShanghaiOnline he can access “any on-linenewspaper in the world.”As any number of editors, producersand writers in China will privatelyacknowledge, their country has a longway to go in the transition toward whatthey call “marketplace journalism.” Butthe media barons in the PRC persist intheir drive for profits, which they knowdepend on attracting big advertisingnumbers and big circulation numbers,in much the same way that their Westerncounterparts have built press empires.Meanwhile, access to the diversityof information on the Internet isgrowing rapidly. These two powerfulforces, a market driven media insideChina and the increase in news comingfrom the rest of the world, may falter attimes, but in the end they seem unstoppable.■Webster K. Nolan is former Directorof the East-West Center Media Programin Honolulu, Hawaii, and hastraveled frequently in China.Nieman Reports / Fall 1999 35