China Daily, US Edition?
- By Cam MacMurchy
- Published November 20, 2008
Cam MacMurchy
Cam launched Zhongnanhai from a bar stool in Shanghai in May, 2007. He has worked extensively in the journalism, new media, and public relations fields in both his native Canada and China. He currently hosts BizTraveler on Tianjin Television and has launched his own PR and media company, Performance International, with CCTV news anchor and long-time friend James Aitken. He is a regular guest on international radio and television discussing Chinese current affairs, and his articles have appeared in the Washington Times, International Herald Tribune, Canada’s National Post, and Victoria Times Colonist. More info on Cam can be found here.
E-Mail: cam@zhongnanhaiblog.com
It looks like it could be true. James Fallows has posted some information on his blog, while the actual job posting is found at JournalismJobs.com.
It clearly states the position will be in New York, and requires a start-date no later than January 2009.
Now the question that begs to be asked: Who will spend money on China's official English newspaper in the United States? While some American media can be less than interesting/fair/balanced/unbiased, it's still a league apart from their Chinese counterparts. Does anybody watch CCTV 9 in the United States other than for a laugh or two, or because of a serious interest in China?
Even those people will likely not be enough to keep a US edition afloat (mind you, with the government backing the project, money is not an option).
If China ever releases its hordes of talented people from the shackles of government censorship, I have no doubt journalism would flourish in China. Perhaps, at that time, there would be a wide readership of Chinese publications in other corners of the world. But until then, the China Daily, in no matter which edition, will only be seen as a simple propaganda rag.
It clearly states the position will be in New York, and requires a start-date no later than January 2009.
Now the question that begs to be asked: Who will spend money on China's official English newspaper in the United States? While some American media can be less than interesting/fair/balanced/unbiased, it's still a league apart from their Chinese counterparts. Does anybody watch CCTV 9 in the United States other than for a laugh or two, or because of a serious interest in China?
Even those people will likely not be enough to keep a US edition afloat (mind you, with the government backing the project, money is not an option).
If China ever releases its hordes of talented people from the shackles of government censorship, I have no doubt journalism would flourish in China. Perhaps, at that time, there would be a wide readership of Chinese publications in other corners of the world. But until then, the China Daily, in no matter which edition, will only be seen as a simple propaganda rag.
