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Covering the Environment and HealthJMSC0034: Covering ChinaFall 2011Ms. Sky Canaves
Issues of China’s Growth Resource scarcity: energy, food,
minerals, water Pollution: air, water, food Health: overcrowding, workers’
conditions, food and drug safety Role of lax legal enforcement, corruption
Global implicationsGeo-politics of water: Brahma
Chellany No substitute for water Limitations on imports Relatively dry region with high population
growth Water-intensive agriculture, especially for
rising meat consumption Over-damming of rivers
Global implicationsChina-Burma dam dispute
Chinese company running dam project along Irrawaddy river in Burma
Almost all electricity generated by dam would have been purchased by China
But protests over relocations and environmental impact lead to halt
China calls on Burmese government to respect the company’s legal rights and interests
Global implications
Global implicationsChina-Burma dam dispute
Reporting on dispute: not all mention Chinese role apart from construction
More backstory: fighting since June near dam site between Burmese army and independence forces
Dam perceived as way for army to take control over region
Thousands of refugees, unknown number dead
Reporting on IssuesWhich issues are most pressing?How does media report and
frame the issues?What are the impacts of media
attention?What is the role of public
opinion?
Media, Environment and Health Issues in China Shows interaction between government,
media and public Expansion of media outlets creates new
opportunities for different types of reporting
Communications and advocacy role of environmental civil society organizations
Public mobilization around new technologies
Media, Environment and Health Issues in China Protests over environmental and health issues,
while possibly sensitive, not as threatening to Party dominance as other issues
Party is outwardly aligned with goals of environmental sustainability and good health of citizens
But contradictions over growth vs. environment, health, safety
What happens when corruption and politics are implicated in crises and scandals?
Case Study: AIDS in Henan
Case Study: AIDS in Henan
Blood selling practice encouraged by local officials
Awareness of problems in 1995-1996
But local obstructionism killed the story
Interference with doctors and testing
Lack of transparency in reporting illnesses
Case Study: AIDS in Henan Jan. 2000: Zhang Jicheng reports in
Huaxi Dushibao (Sichuan province) Chinese media and academic reports Concerns raised with Beijing May 2011: Henan bans media coverage
of AIDS after Dahe Daily report Aug. 2000: New York Times coverage
begins to draw global attention
Case Study: AIDS in HenanGradual progress on story by
journalists from variety of independent-leaning and foreign media, experts
Compare extensive coverage in Chinese outlets with relatively brief but powerful reporting from foreign sources
Case Study: AIDS in HenanCalculated risks v. repercussions
Cross-regional reporting “Shouldering the door”: enough people
apply limited force “Boxing under the table”: working within
Party restrictions “Jiao Junior”: wait until someone else
speaks out first, then follow suit “Taking half a step”: Don’t jump the gun
Case Study: SARS Limited reporting prior to appearance in
Hong Kong in Feb. 2003 By April 10, Ministry of Health had
disclosed only 22 cases April 20: acknowledgement of a serious
problem, 339 cases counted, health minister and Beijing mayor sacked
April 27: official tally nears 3,000 Chinese media criticism of handling
Case Study: SARS Jiang Yanyong: the “SARS” doctor
Whistleblower sent letter to CCTV4 and Phoenix News
Contradicted official count of only 12 cases in Beijing. Jiang said one hospital alone had seen 60 cases, with seven deaths
Letter leaked to foreign media
Case Study: SARS Caijing magazine reporting revealed
spread of SARS in Beijing
Case Study: SARSAftermath
Lessons for transparency? January 2004: Swift retribution for
Southern Metropolis Daily after re-emergence of SARS reported
Fall 2009: Slow reporting on H1N1 deaths
Limited power of WHO
Case Study: Songhua River
Case Study: Songhua River Nov. 13, 2005: Chemical plant explosion
triggers toxic spill in northeast China Early Chinese media reports mentioned
the plant explosion but not the spill -- until water supplies to major city of Harbin had to be cut
Initial government response was that water supplies suspended for routine maintenance – misinformation fuels rumors and panic
Case Study: Songhua River CCTV broke the story of the spill , no
longer a local issue Environmental minister Xie Zhenhua
resigned right away, but appointed NDRC vice-minister a year later, China’s Copenhagen climate change negotiator
5-year, 13 billion RMB plan to clean Songhua river announced, subsequently extended to 10-years, 26 billion RMB
Case Study: Packages Collection of stories on environmental and
health impacts of China’s rapid economic growth WSJ: lead poisoning, water pollution, white
dolphin, illegal mining, among other stories on social costs of growth, won Pulitzer
NYT: a year later sole focus on health and environment
Another NYT package, “A Toxic Pipeline,” that touched on China, also won Pulitzer
Case Study: PackagesHow do foreign media represent
China’s environmental and health issues?
How are the stories framed?What are common themes?How do foreign media decide
which stories to cover?
Case Study: PackagesWSJ:
http://www.pulitzer.org/works/2007-International-Reporting
NYT: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2007/08/26/world/asia/choking_on_growth.html
NYT: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/series/toxicpipeline/index.html
Case Study: Three Gorges Dam
Case Study: Three Gorges Dam Reporting in China: Dai Qing Yangtze! Yangtze! (是否该进行长江三峡水坝的工程 ) (1989)
The River Dragon Has Come! ( 水龍來了 !)(1996)
Reporter as activist: Dai has been vocal opponent of dam, jailed after 1989
Case Study: Three Gorges Dam Reporting in English: WSJ (2007) Focus on erosion, landslides, silt build-
up, pollution , structural dangers Some prior coverage by Chinese media,
but WSJ report acknowledged by government official weeks later
Follow up story on revelation of additional relocation plans affecting 2 million
Case Study: Tainted Milk Sanlu: company at center of scandal,
based in Shijiazhuang, Hebei province
43% owned by Fonterra, New Zealand Dairy giant
On Sept. 5, Fonterra had informed NZ government, which then turned to authorities in Beijing
Case Study: Tainted Milk Unscrupulous producers added chemical
melamine to watered-down milk to increase appearance of protein content
Melamine is toxic, causing kidney failure in severe cases
Xinhua reported unusual outbreak of kindey stones in Gansu province on Sept. 10, 2008
Local papers followed up the next day
Case Study: Tainted Milk Southern Weekend was aware in July 2008
on infants who fell ill after consuming Sanlu milk powder, but could not report
Even after initial news broke, Southern Weekend reporting suppressed by authorities
Reports of Sanlu media strategy with Baidu- pay to censor negative search results
Media ordered to follow Xinhua Caijing, foreign media role
Case Study: Tainted Milk Altogether nearly 300,000 infants
affected, only 3 confirmed deaths
Case Study: Vaccines Wang Keqin, pioneering investigative
reporter, then with China Economic Times
March 2010: breaks story on faulty vaccines in Shanxi that caused death of 4 children, injured many others
Story removed from CET site, but still circulated on portals for some time
Case Study: PX ProtestsSpread of news through microblog
--> efforts to control information on microblog
Images harder to controlXinhua releases early English-
language report, but no ChineseBroad coverage, largely peaceful
protest, swift resolution
Case Study: PX Protests Spread of news through microblog -->
efforts to control information on microblog
Images harder to control Xinhua releases early English-language
report, but no Chinese Broad coverage, largely peaceful
protest, swift resolution https://plus.google.com/photos/1078063
99768906113634/albums/5640536706258776673