Watching fashion programme in Phoenix Chinese TV, not my usual choice, during writing this article. It is impossible to imagine that all these programmes are produced in those tiny studios. When the PR manager said that they earn about 1.2billion last year, that AMAZED me. I had that perceptions that Phoenix has a huge base of audience, but turn out they have like 2 hundred million in China. Later I realize they do not need a huge base of audiences. They just need the right audiences, the audiences who is willing to spent, appear to be intellectuals, so business will place advertisement in the channel.
Apple Daily and Phoenix TV
There is not enough time to ask them questions. It is really funny that the InfoNews Channel I am watching is in traditional Chinese subtitles, instead of the simplified one. When the anchor is summing up the editorials of the day in the morning news programme, the Apple Daily's (pro-democracy paper, paper sell really well just like the NYTimes, but the context is like the Mirror ) editorial is always missing. But when during the visit to our last stop -- the library, I saw a stack of Apple Daily's newspaper stand there. Oh, I thought they ignored the paper entirely, but turn out not to be true. I wanted to ask a silly question , why are the papers here but they are never used in the channel. That give me some insight of where they are setting the station in Hong Kong, at least they can read democratic paper which are forbidden in China.
Political Correctness
Comparing to CCTV news, Phoenix is more appealing to me. CCTV news is so unbelievably formal (the clothes, the PTH, etc), always politically correct. Phoenix is more vivid and seem a little open-minded. Yet, that is just a packing. They would not address Ma Ying Jiu as President of Taiwan, but the Leader of Taiwan. They introduce a lot about Taiwan to Chinese audience in "pro-unification with China" perspectives. What the editor said in the meeting room does disappoint me. They will delete a commentary made by guest because of the "government officials" dislike it. Why would I be surprise? They are communist after all, to conform is communist 101. Freedom of speech is practicing in Hong Kong, but not in China after all.
Patriotic?
Anyway, comparing to TVB or ATV news (the only two free TV channels in Hong Kong, TVB get 90% of the HK audiences.), Phoenix has a more wide and global perspectives. That is the greatness of Phoenix. TVB or ATV seldom cover news in Middle East or Africa (Unless the Prime Minister place a visit there). Phoenix has reporters all over the world, including Tehran. A patriot can be very cosmopolitan person!
This trip is definitely an eye-opener. And I think.... they need a new PR manager.. (the current one is great, but Phoenix deserves better.. don't you think?)
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That's a very good obsevation, Vicky! i do agree with you that Pheonix seems to be the beter form of hybrid, combining the vision of an international TV station, and hopefully a more objective view (which is lacking even among Hong Kong stations, for some reasons). We often put too much emphasis on the censorship side of things, and that we need to test from the textual analysis how much they have to sacrifice, and how much they fall into 'propaganda'. the other interesting thing would be to see their programmes design, how they imagine their 'global audience'. the third issue is about the star system they run by -- what is the appeal of the star system?
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