|
Media and Advertising
Know Your Chinese Newspapers: Tabloids and broadsheetsPosted by Joel Martinsen, November 16, 2005 11:37 PM
Occasionally in English-language media you'll run across a citation from a "Beijing tabloid," conjuring up images of irresponsible journalism and "headless body found in topless bar" style headlines. It is true that the tabloids that arose in China during the 1990s were launched out of a desire to actually make money in the news business, but when the front page of the typical party paper reports such excitement as "Minuscule Pacific Island Nation Reiterates Commitment to One-China Policy," the more commercially-oriented papers don't need to be all that lurid to attract readers (the truly trashy stuff is unregistered). Add to that the recent arrival of broadsheets with a commercial sensibility and tabloids that take themselves way too seriously, and we have an environment in which reputation is hard to judge from format. Of course, that's not to say format isn't important. When the well-respected Southern Weekend (a broadsheet) started printing on new presses in 2003, effecting a minor retooling of the paper's dimensions, it promoted the changes on classical aesthetic grounds: the new format was the closest to the Golden Rectangle of any Chinese newspaper. Anyway, see for yourself. Here's a graphical comparison of some of Beijing's broadsheets and tabloids. Format: Broadsheet Respectability: It's the National Voice of the Party, so draw your own conclusions Distinguishing Characteristics: Headlines, like those of party dailies across the country, are done up in a wide variety of typefaces. They're also often compressed to the point of illegibility to fit a long declaration over two columns. Format: Tabloid, three times a week Respectability: Though part of the People's Daily group, it's not exactly known for its sober reflection on international affairs. Distinguishing Characteristics: Three times out of five the front page headline froths at either Taiwan or the US. Lots of pictures of warships and fighter planes for folks who don't want to subscribe to Ordnance magazine. "Foreigners look at China" section is often good for a laugh. Format: Broadsheet Respectability: Much higher than its absolutely garish color scheme would suggest. The papers of the Beijing Youth Daily Group have remained untouched by the financial scandals rocking the group's HK-listed advertising arm. Distinguishing Characteristics: There's enough blue and black ink used in this paper to drown a small dog. Like its sister publication, the evening Mirror (tabloid), it often features computer-generated renderings of crime scenes. ![]() Ads in The Beijing News. Format: Tabloid Respectability: Highly regarded investigative journalism. Pretensions of being China's New York Times keep it mostly on the high road. The paper knows what sells, however, as its month-long series of interviews with survivors of the Japanese invasion demonstrates ("The devils stole my bike" read the headline above one installment). Distinguishing Characteristics: "Tasked to report on everything" used to be the paper's motto, but it disappeared from the masthead the first week of November. Front page often features excellent photographs, but just as often is a mess of advertising. Its recent 2nd anniversary issue (pictured) stuck full-page real estate ads on the front page of practically every section. The paper's delivery fleet can be seen throughout the day in the neighborhoods of Beijing, wearing their vests and pedaling their yellow bicycles. ![]() The Economic Observer. Format: Broadsheet weekly Respectability: Still quite high even though a group of editors walked out over what they saw as upper management betraying the paper's mission for cash. Distinguishing Characteristics: Prints "Advertorial" over advertorials, but floats graphic ads amidst the serious content. Pink like the Financial Times, or like the gossip tabloid Big Star. Very little online content available to non-subscribers. ![]() Mirror from 15 November. Format: Tabloid Respectability: Quite good. Cited far more often than rival evening paper Beijing Evening News. Distinguishing Characteristics: As its Chinese name implies, the "Legal Evening News" includes a section of legal news (what big shot got arrested today), practical legal knowledge (how and when to sue your neighbor), as well as other typical evening paper stuff like serial fiction and quirky news features. Entertainment reporting indicates that someone on staff has a hate-on for Vicki Zhao. Format: Tabloid Respectability: It's a commercial paper under the auspices of the People's Daily, with independent editorial control. Its news editor occasionally gets frustrated by inept front page layouts. Distinguishing Characteristics: According to its news editor, this paper delights in its reputation as a "laborers' paper" even as other rags pursue the nascent middle class (related Danwei story). Solid business news. Format: Tabloid Respectability: Printed a story from The Onion. Distinguishing Characteristics: The evening paper from the Beijing Daily Group, it traditionally runs a more fluff than the main party paper. Kitchen sink sort of stuff - recipes, neighborhood watch reports, serialized novels, and tons of advertorials. It does have the highest circulation of any local Beijing paper, but this may just be inertia. Format: Tabloid Respectability: Formerly called Star Daily, it's made a conscious effort to appear less gossipy. The writing inside, unfortunately... Distinguishing Characteristics: The best part of this paper is the ad space in the gutter margins - find casting calls for extras in costume dramas, ads for ringtones, and personal statements from fetching 20-year-old women who recently inherited their deceased parents' furniture stores and are looking for a Beijing non-resident to share their considerable fortune. Format: Broadsheet Respectability: Doesn't get much respect, but then no one really seems to know it's there. Distinguishing Characteristics: Color scheme and section layout are clean, as Beijing broadsheets go, but articles are short on content. Format: Broadsheet Respectability: Considerably worse than the garish color scheme suggests. Distinguishing Characteristics: Olympics, olympics, olympics, even more so than the rest of Beijing's print media. Link and Sources
|
Partner Links
Jobs in China
Recent Comments
lyl on
The cult of a Super Girl
Jeremy Gol on
Danwei Canteen: Chestnut Chicken Stew
Gareth on
Gamble your life away in ZT Online
Inst on
The Mouse looms over Shanghai
Anonymous on
Giant Mao Zedong stands alone in the autumn cold
Joel Marti on
A centenarian monk reads the newspaper
China Media Timeline
Major media events over the last three decades
Danwei Model Workers
![]() Recommended blogs and new media
Books on China
Xujun Eberlein's Apologies Forthcoming: Hong Kong's Blacksmith Books has published a short story collection by Xujun Eberlein.
Princess Der Ling: Two Years in the Forbidden City: Two years in the Forbidden City is largely a reminiscence of the minutiae of life for one of history's most powerful women, by one of her court attendants, a Manchu noble's daughter by the name of Der Ling.
Carl Crow's The Long Road Back to China: In 1939 Carl Crow - an American journalist, advertising executive and author who had lived in Shanghai for 25 years until forced out by the Japanese - travelled up the Burma Road from Rangoon to Chongqing on assignment for Liberty magazine - 'the most interesting assignment I have ever been given'.
Front Page of the Day
A different newspaper every weekday
From the Vault
Classic Danwei posts
+ New Years Past: Other Spring Festivals by Geremie R. Barmé (2007.02): Sang Ye interviews two people about their experiences during Great Leap Forward-era Spring Festivals. Translated and annotated by Geremie R. Barmé. + Trend-spotting in online fiction (2007.06): An interview with Daniel Dan Fei (丹飞), publisher of Notes on Graverobbing (盗墓笔记), Rear Palace (后宫), and Those Ming Dynasty Things (明朝那些事). + China's 50 Most Beautiful People (2005.03): The Beijing News borrows a picture of Maggie Cheung from Cosmo for the cover of today's Entertainment insert, "50 Most Beautiful People in China". Ms. Cheung takes the top spot, with Takeshi Kaneshiro, Little S, Zhang Ziyi, and Liu Ye rounding out the top five in this exercise that is a conscious imitation of People magazine's yearly rundown.
Danwei Archives
Danwei Feeds
Via Feedsky
or Feedburner |















