From Beijing-based Global Times, translated by Ryan Martinson in Morning China news digest:
It’s said that during the Beijing Olympics more than 20,000 foreign journalists will be in town, most of them Western journalists. Upon hearing that there will be so many Western journalists, some people have started to worry, and this has got me thinking about the late Italian director Michelangelo Antonioni. Those who experienced the Cultural Revolution will surely remember the great campaign to criticize his documentary China some 34 years ago. For the sake of gaining a more complete understanding of Western journalists, it’s a good idea to review this history.
At that time Michelangelo Antonioni was a left-leaning member of the Italian cultural community with a friendly attitude towards China. Thus, China invited him to produce a documentary that could introduce the country to the rest of the world. He came to China filled with zeal, and was enthusiastically received by the Chinese during his stay. But after beginning his grueling work schedule he discovered that many of the designated places for his shoots were setup ahead of time with citizens wearing brand new outfits. Those who he interviewed acted as if speaking from a script that they had rehearsed for the occasion. Thus, during rest times Michelangelo Antonioni would quietly slip out with his camera to walk through the backstreets and alleys of Beijing and film the daily lives of the common people. These included things like people practicing Tai Qi, small workshops on the street, dilapidated factories, inconvenient toilets, street-hawkers, self-trained “barefooted doctors,” street-side canteens, and breakfast pushcarts.
China first debuted in Italy in 1973. The European’s first glimpse at the real lives of Chinese people created a sensation. But because of the influence of ultra-leftism, when the film was shown in China, the country responded with a top down campaign to criticize it for “slandering the image of the revolution” and for the director’s “ulterior motives.”
When Chinese movie critics view the film today, most of them say that Michelangelo Antonioni used a broad perspective to get as close as possible to the lives of the common Chinese people and has left us a large body of authentic images. In this most peculiar period in Chinese history, he captured so many situations that we had already been desensitized to. To commemorate him, CCTV aired a special episode called “Michelangelo Antonioni and his connection with China.”
This history causes one to think about how today there are certain people who are worried that during the Olympics Western journalists will try to go off the beaten path. In fact, even if there are individual Western journalists who come to Beijing with biases, or even deliberately create negative news, we should still remain calm. We shouldn’t regard individuals as representing the West as a whole. And we especially shouldn’t view them as “hypothetical enemies.” China’s improvements have in fact already basically gained the world’s respect. Nowadays who dares to openly say “the Chinese are a degenerate race?” Even if a certain actress (Sharon Stone) said some nasty things, there were many foreigners who stood up to criticize and discredit her.
I am personally acquainted with a number of foreign correspondents and intellectuals living in China, some of whom are my former students. In general they wish the best for China. They have a great fondness for Chinese culture and people, and they can comply with China’s legal and moral norms. They frequently regard their chance to work in China as an honor and source of pride. However, sometimes while working they encounter some unpleasant things. For example, during interviews they will sometimes run into some prearranged things and scenes. While filming they will sometimes be forced to deal with unreasonable and unnecessary interference. The data they are given is sometimes not very precise. These lead to griping. But as long as they comply with Chinese law, as long as they don’t betray their professional ethics, then we shouldn’t facilely claim that they have “ulterior motives.” Instead we should be more understanding. Dialog should replace antagonism. Specific problems should be dealt with on an individual basis. Personal attacks should be left out of it. We are all mortals, we can all make mistakes. As long as mistakes are corrected, problems are dealt with candidly, then there will never be another “Michelangelo Antonioni incident,” and we can become friends with far more foreign journalists.
