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TV series aims to 'decode' China

 

 Source: China Daily   Updated: 2014-06-18 
TV series aims to 'decode' China

China hand Robert Kuhn shares his observations in the five-part TV documentary series China's Challenges. Photos provided to China Daily

 

An award-winning documentary series has shone a light on some of the most troubling issues faced by the nation's leaders and people. He Wei reports.

 

But despite Freeman's visionary words, foreigners today are still wary of China's goodwill, no matter how genuine."To see China as it is, not as we wish or fear it to be" was the catch-cry of well-known US diplomat and China expert Charles W. Freeman, Jr.

While this may frustrate Beijing, old China hand Robert Kuhn believes it is not wise to simply cast blame or conjure conspiracies.

Kuhn, author of How China's Leaders Think and many other books, including a biography of former president Jiang Zemin, intends to depict China "as it is" showing China's candid acceptance of some of its most challenging problems.

He has delivered his observations in a five-part TV documentary series, China's Challenges, which aims to chronicle China's tremendous changes, and show how the problems caused by these changes are shaping the lives and futures of more than 1 billion people.

But the program was not initially designed this way. Kuhn says the documentary was supposed "to honor the achievements of China's previous leaders".

 

 

"But I suggested that to explore the problems and the challenges that China's new leaders face might be a better way to tell the real story to international audiences," Kuhn says. 
 
The TV series is now being broadcast on PBS, a mainstream US station that is wary of airing anything that looks like government propaganda, a rare achievement for a Chinese-made program.
 
To develop original stories while maintaining a balanced, objective view, Kuhn sought intelligent partners, who know China well, have an international perspective and are not afraid to tackle thorny and sensitive subjects.
 
The International Channel Shanghai, an English-language TV channel under the municipal government-run Shanghai Media Group, seemed a perfect fit. A group of five young and talented women directors, together with Kuhn's team, crafted the year-long project.
 
While China's growing strengths have global import, the series touches upon the severe problems that China is beset with: economic dislocation, disparities between the rich and poor, inadequate and imbalanced social services, tensions over political reform, uncertainties of belief systems and more.
 
"We would like to have the series framed in terms of President Xi Jinping's Chinese Dream but not make it too apparent," says Sun Wei, channel director at ICS.
"But I suggested that to explore the problems and the challenges that China's new leaders face might be a better way to tell the real story to international audiences," Kuhn says. 
 
The TV series is now being broadcast on PBS, a mainstream US station that is wary of airing anything that looks like government propaganda, a rare achievement for a Chinese-made program.
 
To develop original stories while maintaining a balanced, objective view, Kuhn sought intelligent partners, who know China well, have an international perspective and are not afraid to tackle thorny and sensitive subjects.
 
The International Channel Shanghai, an English-language TV channel under the municipal government-run Shanghai Media Group, seemed a perfect fit. A group of five young and talented women directors, together with Kuhn's team, crafted the year-long project.
 
While China's growing strengths have global import, the series touches upon the severe problems that China is beset with: economic dislocation, disparities between the rich and poor, inadequate and imbalanced social services, tensions over political reform, uncertainties of belief systems and more.
 
"We would like to have the series framed in terms of President Xi Jinping's Chinese Dream but not make it too apparent," says Sun Wei, channel director at ICS.
"So perhaps the hardest part is to get people talking to a foreigner in front of the cam-era, whether it's ordinary citizens or high-ranking officials or scholars. That's the biggest value of our Sino-US collaboration in this team," says Getzels.
 
The team is not afraid to push the envelope, says ICS vice-director Wang Lijun. 
 
"When we moved on to the new-media topic, some people expressed concern that micro blogs can spread false information like a contagious disease. But in our view, the cure is more information, not less," Wang says.
 
The message we are delivering here is that microblogs are giving China a chance to create a system which is more open, fair and just, says Kuhn.
 
For its bold questions and sharp vision, the first season of China's Challenges won first prize at the China News Award competition, the country's top-ranked journalism award. Kuhn is now preparing to shoot the next season.
 
"For the second season, we will delve deeper into China by visiting different places other than top cities like Shanghai and Beijing. And we will try to address the questions and present possible solutions," he says.
 
If you look at the bigger picture, China's mission is to elevate the living standard of its people. And seeking hegemony would not help to achieve this goal, says Wang Jianjun, executive vice-president of Shanghai Media Group.
 
"We are going to make the series on an annual basis in order to track where China is heading," she says.
Q&A Wang Jianjun, executive vice-president of Shanghai Media Group.
 
Q: What made International Channel Shanghai produce such a TV documentary in collaboration with Kuhn's team?
 
A: Initially the documentary was designed to honor past achievements of China ahead of the 18th National Party Congress in 2012. The International Channel Shanghai is essentially an English-language channel. It should focus on what the world is saying about China. The country has reasserted its stance that it will seek peaceful development. Misperceptions can, however, distort facts. Western anxiety is rooted in fears that China will become assertive, aggressive and expansionist. We would like to correct such misconceptions. Kuhn is well positioned to talk about the challenges that China faces in a way that is better understood by Western viewers.
 
Q: Do you face pressure when touching upon sensitive issues?
 
A: To be frank, there is little pressure because we have thought through the necessity of approaching topics this way. Initially my primary concern was that the directors were very young and it was unclear how they would handle in-depth topics. After many preparatory meetings, team members today have a better understanding of political and environmental issues. It is our story-telling style that has won us praise at home and abroad.
 
Q: What is your expectation from season two?
 
A: In the second season, we aim to focus on ordinary Chinese people. The Chinese Dream stirs hopes and expectations. But outside China, it sometimes provokes questions. There isn't a better way to answer those questions than to show how the lives of Chinese people have been reshaped by rapid changes in the country. We will go to places where pilot elections for village officials are being held. The China's Challenges brand is our barometer to measure China's growth, and we hope to tell the real meaning of the Chinese Dream－how it's transformative for China－and present it to the world.
 
Q: What is your channel's role as a local foreign-language media channel?
 
A: CCTV News, for instance, represents the official voice of the government and conveys national interest to viewers. But local media, such as ours, has more flexibility. We are able to discuss sensitive topics and in a lighter manner, too. So, our role is to complement national media outlets and diversify voices of the Chinese people on culture as well.
 

 

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