Fearful agencies press goodies on Chinese reporters
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Several years ago, I attended a lecture given at my college by executives from the Chinese media giants.
One of them asked the audience, which mainly consisted of journalism students, "How many of you want to be a journalist after graduation?" More than a half raised their hands, which gave the professional a big surprise.
"Journalism isn't seen as a very decent job abroad these days," he continued, "I'm impressed that so many of our young people still have such enthusiasm."
People tend to believe that developed countries have laid out the roadmap of social development for China, and what the West is witnessing today might take place in China tomorrow.
This is partly true. Over the past years, the reputation of journalists has indeed declined, and popular views of journalists become complicated.
Nevertheless, "Chinese characteristics" still prevail. One thing has barely changed: A press card in your pocket often means a halo above your head.
Recently my friend and I traveled to Xi'an, Shaanxi Province. We took a taxi at the local airport. Everything was fine until 20 minutes later when I glimpsed at the meter, which had already hit 90 yuan ($14)!
The driver then started to explain that his taxi was not an ordinary one. It was part of an image project by the local government, and there were only 100 such taxies in Xi'an. The charge was thus 60 percent more than the average.
I called the local hotline for complaints to check it out. A voice on the scratchy line informed me clearly "That's true. You are taking a black Hongqi (Red Flag) taxi of high fuel consumption and emissions."
"But why do I need to pay 60 percent more?" I still felt very confused. "Because it is a Hongqi, and you are enjoying its steady bearing capacity," the man replied composedly.
Ending the ludicrous phone conversation, I argued with the driver, insisting that he should have told us beforehand. He said he didn't want to, because passengers might feel insulted, thinking the driver was worrying about their ability to afford the charge.
At this moment, my friend turned to me and said "Let it pass. You can write a report after returning home and let people know about Xi'an's double-charge system."
These few words brought a sudden, dramatic change to the argument.
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