|
Newspapers
Entertainment terrorism given free rein in printPosted by Joel Martinsen, April 12, 2007 2:09 PM
Southern Weekly weighs in this week on the story of Yang Lijuan's quest to meet Andy Lau that ultimately resulted in her father's suicide.
Reporter Yuan Lei interviewed friends and neighbors of the Yang family back in their hometown of Aganzhen, a once-prosperous Gansu town that has recently experienced a drastic decline in fortune and reputation. The feature paints a picture of a family that had troubles long before Andy Lau came into the picture. It's not entirely sympathetic to the family, but it does provide more depth to the public's understanding of the 12-year saga. As with earlier articles on Yang's ordeal, however, the feeling of voyeurism is hard to escape. Neil Postman has been cited regularly in opinion pieces written by critics of the media circus. In yesterday's Modern Express, for example, Chen Weixing, a professor of international media at the Communication University of China, calls the current media situation worse than mere "death by amusement." His op-ed piece suggested that information itself had supplanted information about particular circumstances, and closed with the line "Amusement has already killed. What we face now is entertainment terrorism." Reportedly, the authorities have tried to limit space given to the affair in certain areas of the media. Yuan Lei, who blogs under the name Milk Pig, posted the following last night:
Links and Sources
|
Partner Links
Jobs in China
Recent Comments
affordabe on
Blogspot unblocked, but Blogger is blocked
Adam J. Sc on
Snow in Beijing
Peter Kauf on
Bound feet in China
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
+ The 'national' in National Day (2006.10): Xiao Feng writes about China's national flavor, national curse, national bird, national car, and so forth, Dongfang Yu writes on the true meaning of China's National Day in the age of angry youth. + Don't ask so laowai don't have to tell (2008.07): An essay was written by Geremie Barmé, scholar, filmmaker and author of the new book The Forbidden City. + Religion and government in an uneasy mix (2008.03): Phoenix Weekly (凤凰周刊) article from October, 2007, on government influence on religious practice in Tibet.
Danwei Archives
Danwei Feeds
Via Feedsky
or Feedburner |






Comments on Entertainment terrorism given free rein in print
"Death by Amusement"?
How about "schadenfreude" or "幸災樂禍"?