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CHINA TO BAN ALL PRIVATELY-FUND ED NEWS ORGANIZATIONS?
China to Ban All Privately-Funded News Organizations?
Regulators Set Sights On Influential Industries
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By Alistair Baker-Brian
From October 8 until October 14, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) solicited public opinion for the Market Access Negative List 2021.
As part of the list, the NDRC made a number of proposals which would effectively ban privately-funded companies from funding and or running news organizations.
Six noteworthy proposals are as follows: • Non-public capital must not engage in news gathering, editing or broadcasting • Non-public capital must not invest in the establishment and operation of news organizations including but not necessarily limited to news agencies, newspaper publishing units, radio and television broadcasting, radio and television stations, internet news information collection, editing and publishing organizations, etc. • Non-public capital must not engage in news organization operations, including pages, channel frequencies, channels, columns and public accounts • Non-public capital must not conduct livestream-broadcasting related to politics, economics, defense, foreign affairs, society, culture, science and technology, health, education, sport and other areas related to politics or public opinion • Non-public capital must not broadcast news produced by foreign entities • Non-public capital must not hold forum summits or awards ceremonies related to news or public opinion
Wang Sixin, professor of law at Communications University of China, said that the measures were about professionalizing news reporting, telling Global Times, “you must be qualified to publish news, just like if you are not a doctor, then you cannot treat patients.”
Fang Kecheng, assistant professor of journalism at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said that the measures have in fact been in place since 2005. However, the implementation of said measures has been “selective,” he told South China Morning Post.
The move comes as China seeks to tighten control over the private sector in a number of industries.
Newly-introduced measures related to education effectively ban for-profit after-school tutoring in core subjects. Many of China’s after-school training centers have already closed as a result.
In addition to reducing the academic and financial burden on children and parents, respectively, the government says the new measures will help ensure education is not “controlled by capital.”
Moreover, stocks of Chinese tech giant Tencent fell after state-media described some of the company’s products as “electronic drugs.” Measures have since been introduced which limit the amount of time under-18s can play online video games.
The latest proposals are yet to be implemented. The scale and impact of such measures is, therefore, unknown as of press time.
RANDOM NUMBER
29.5…
… That’s the percentage by which consumption during China’s National Week holiday rose since the same time in 2020, according to a report by Meituan. The figure is a combination of consumption data from businesses run by Meituan, covering catering, accommodation, travel and entertainment.
The figure is a positive sign for China’s economic recovery, amidst the effects of COVID-19.
Unsurprisingly, highest levels of consumption were in China’s first-tier cities. Shanghai led the way, followed by Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou. Other cities which made the top ten include Chengdu, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Wuhan, Suzhou and Xi’an.
DON’T YOU KNOW WHO I AM?
Zhang Yuxuan
Zhang Yuxuan, better known online as Vicky Xuanxuan, has become something of a singing sensation on Chinese video social media site Bili Bili.
Zhang uploaded an original song entitled ’’She’ which received more than 10 million views on the platform. The song was written by the 15 year-old in just 30 minutes. Since then, she has uploaded many more videos, including other original songs.
Zhang, a middle school student at Shenzhen Arts School majoring in violin, now has over 1.7 million followers on Bili Bili. Some netizens have described her as the “young Chinese Taylor Swift.” She told Global Times she has ambitions to study at one of the world’s top music schools, such as Berklee College of Music in Boston.
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
The quote comes from Zhang Jiandong, vice-mayor of Beijing and executive vice-president of the organizing committee of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. Zhang’s comments were part of a speech given during a ceremony at Beijing’s Olympic Tower on October 20. The ceremony marked the arrival of the Olympic torch in preparation for the games. As per Olympic custom, the torch was lit in Athens, the birthplace of the Olympics, and transported to Beijing.
As a precautionary measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19, events in which the torch is displayed, including the traditional national marathon, will be scaled back.
The Winter Olympics will take place from February 4 until 20. Meanwhile, the Winter Paralympics will take place from March 4 until 13. Events will be held in Beijing and nearby Zhangjiakou, Hebei province. Beijing is the first-ever city to host both summer and winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, having hosted the summer games in 2008.
CHINESE CORNER
8 Chinese Names for Your Workouts
Love to hit the gym? Here are a few handy Chinese words you can use to talk about your fitness activities.
1. CARDIO
有氧运动 (yǒuyǎng yùndòng) cardio / aerobics VERB 做 (zuò)
5. STRETCHING
拉伸 (lāshēn) to stretch; stretching
EXAMPLE 健身以后一定要拉伸。 Jiànshēn yǐhòu yīdìng yào lāshēn. Make sure to stretch after a workout.
2. JOGGING
跑步 (pǎobù) jogging; to run
EXAMPLE 我每天都去跑步，每次跑30分钟。 Wǒ měitiān dōu qù pǎobù, měi cì pǎo sānshí fēnzhōng. I go jogging every day, and run for 30 minutes every time.
3. YOGA
瑜伽 (yújiā) yoga
EXAMPLE 你喜欢练哪种瑜伽？ Nǐ xǐhuan liàn nǎ zhǒng yújiā? What’s your favorite type of yoga?
6. POWER TRAINING
力量训练 (lìliàng xùnliàn) power training / weight exercise VERB 做 (zuò)
7. CROSS FIT
混合健身 (hùnhé jiànshēn) cross-fit
EXAMPLE 你知道混合健身吗？我觉得你会喜 欢。 Nǐ zhīdào hùnhé jiànshēn ma? Wǒ juéde nǐ huì xǐhuan. Have you heard of cross-fit? I think you’d like it.
4. PILATES
普拉提 (pǔlātí) pilates
EXAMPLE 听说普拉提是最容易坚持的运动。 Tīng shuō pǔ lā tí shì zuì róngyì jiānchí de yùndòng. I’ve heard that pilates is the easiest kind of exercise to stick to.
8. BOXING
拳击 (quánjī) boxing
EXAMPLE 比起足球，我更喜欢拳击。 Bǐ qǐ zúqiú, wǒ gèng xǐhuan quánjí. I prefer boxing to football.
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