Promoting Harmony with Conflicts? a Study of Reality Television in China Issue Date: 2016-06-29
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Cover Page The handle http://hdl.handle.net/1887/40863 holds various files of this Leiden University dissertation. Author: Li, Z. Title: Promoting harmony with conflicts? A study of reality television in China Issue Date: 2016-06-29 Promoting Harmony with Conflicts? A Study of Reality Television in China © Zheng LI, 2015 ISBN: 978-94-028-0215-3 Cover design by Li WANG and Zheng LI Printed by Ipskamp Drukkers Promoting Harmony with Conflicts? A study of reality television in China Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus prof.mr. C.J.J.M. Stolker, volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op Woensdag 29 juni 2016 klokke 15:00 uur door Zheng LI geboren te Shanghai, China in 1983 Promotiecommissie: Promotor: Prof. Dr. Kees Brants Co-Promotor: Dr. Daniela Stockmann Overige Leden: Prof. Dr. Joop van Holsteyn Prof. Dr. Stefan Landsberger Dr. Rebekah Tromble Prof. Dr. Jeroen de Kloet University of Amsterdam Prof. Dr. Liesbet van Zoonen Erasmus University Rotterdam Contents List of Tables iv List of Figures v List of Pictures vi Abbreviation and Acronyms vii Acknowledgements ix Chapter One: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Example Case: A Battle of Conscience 3 1.3 Context for the Emergence of the Mediation Show 7 1.4 Puzzles, Research Questions, and Aims 11 1.5 Structure of This Dissertation 14 Chapter Two: BACKGROUND 19 2.1 Introduction 19 2.2 Socio-Economic and Political Context 22 2.3 Politics of Harmony and Conflict Control 29 2.4 Media Marketisation and Control of Content 36 2.5 Conclusion 44 Chapter Three : LITERATURE REVIEW 47 3.1 Introduction 47 3.2 Media System and Politics 48 3.3 The Role of TV Entertainment in Politics 55 3.4 Television Audience Analysis 61 3.5 Studies on Mediation Shows 64 3.6 Conclusion 65 Chapter Four: METHODOLOGY 67 4.1 Introduction 67 ii 4.2 Preliminary Fieldwork 69 4.3 Phase I: In-Depth Interviews 71 4.4 Phase I: An Analysis of Disputes Topics 76 4.5 Phase II: a. Online Survey 78 4.6 Phase II: b. Focus Group 82 4.7 Conclusion 87 Chapter Five: PRODUCTION OF XLNJ 89 5.1 Introduction 89 5.2 Origin and Aims of the Programme 92 5.3 Production of XLNJ 102 5.4 Issues of Contentions 109 5.5 Conclusion 118 Chapter Six: ONLINE SURVEY 123 6.1 Introduction 123 6.2 Demographic Features of the Sample Audience 124 6.3 What Makes People Watch the Mediation Show? 128 6.4 Perceptions of XLNJ 133 6.5 Conclusions 153 Chapter Seven: FOCUS GROUP 157 7.1 Introduction 157 7.2 Understanding Viewers’ Uses and Gratifications 159 7.3 Tensions and Contradictions 168 7.4 Conclusion 180 Chapter Eight: CONCLUSION 183 8.1 Introduction 183 8.2 Revisiting the Main Findings 184 8.3 Discussion of Findings and Issues of Contention 188 8.4 Limitations, Contributions, and Future Prospects 195 iii References 199 Appendix 223 Summary 259 Samenvatting (Dutch Summary) 263 Curriculum Vitae 267 iv List of Tables Table 5.1 Analysis of XLNJ broadcast every other week in 2013 113 Table 6.1 Audience’s U&Gs of the mediation show 131 Table 6.2 Entertainment Perception of XLNJ 139 Table 6.3 Political perception of XLNJ 144 Table 6.4 Correlations between Political Perception, Weekly Consumption of XLNJ, and Interests in Other Disputes 146 Table 6.5 Cultural Perception of XLNJ 151 Table 8.1 Comparison of programme makers' aim and audience perception 190 v List of Figures Figure 1.1 Overview of the empirical research (Chapters Five-Seven) 17 Figure 2.1 Structure of Shanghai Media Group 40 Figure 5.1 Production Flow of XLNJ 103 Figure 6.1 Frequency of watching XLNJ between groups 126 Figure 6.2 Western and Confucian models of cultural attitude 148 vi List of Pictures Picture 2.1 A couple on the mediation show 21 Picture 2.2 Audience commentators on the show 21 vii Abbreviation and Acronyms ADR Alternative dispute resolution CCP Chinese Communist Party CCTV China Central Television CNNIC China Internet Network Information Center MoJ Ministry of Justice NPC National People's Congress OTV Shanghai Oriental TV station PD Propaganda Department RTS Radio and TV Shanghai SARFT State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television of China SMEG Shanghai Media and Entertainment Group SMG Shanghai Media Group SJB Shanghai Justice Bureau STV Shanghai Television WTO World Trade Organization XLNJ Xin Lao NiangJiu (新老娘舅), a reality mediation TV show Acknowledgements I am using this opportunity to express my gratitude to everyone who supported me throughout the journey towards a PhD. First and foremost, I am grateful to my supervisor, Professor Kees Brants, for his insightful and constructive feedback that helped me to improve my work. I have benefited enormously from his guidance at the most critical moments. I would also like to thank my co-supervisor, Dr. Daniela Stockmann, for not only providing me with invaluable comments on the methodology and practical suggestions on the fieldwork, but also for involving me in her ERC project as a young researcher, through which my research and administrative skills have been greatly enhanced. This dissertation could have hardly been completed without the support and help of my supervisors, I thank you both for having faith in me from the beginning to the end. My Ph.D. journey would never have started without the inspiration and encouragement from my B.A. supervisor Professor Colin Sparks. I would like to thank him for his confidence in me years after I graduated. Similarly, I thank Professors Terhi Rantanen, Sonia Livingstone and Meng Bingchun for their unselfish and aspiring guidance throughout my master studies at the London School of Economics and Political Science. I was very fortunate to have my fieldwork research financed by the Leiden University Fund (LUF). I am indebted to the Chief Producer from Shanghai Television, Yin Qingyi for his willingness to make time in his busy schedule and for the patience and support with which he not only answered my questions but also helped me with my fieldwork in Shanghai. Many anonymous people facilitated my fieldwork. This dissertation would not have been possible without their support and enthusiasm. I cannot reveal their names because of confidentiality, but I wish to express how grateful I am. Special thanks go to the supportive Ph.D. community in Leiden. Although many of you have already left Leiden, the friendship we have will last forever. My gratitude goes to Ma Xinrong, Luo Yizhong, Zhang Tu, Geng Changjuan, Pan Wen, Yang Lijing, Chen Bo, Lv Xiaoli, Zhang Jing, and Wang Zhongyuan. I would like to thank Arash Pourebrahimi for the interesting chit-chats we had when we shared the office. Equal thanks go to Femke Bakker and Luzia Helfer for providing helpful feedback on my work and useful x tips for fieldwork. I also thank my fellow office-mate Luo Ting for the stimulating discussions and encouragements. I have been very blessed to have caring friends, who shared my happiness and witnessed my growth. Special gratitude goes to Dai Yijun, Xia Jing, Vivienne Zhou, Cindy Kong, thank you my girls for cheering me up at every moment when I need a break from the writing of my dissertation. Similarly, I would like to thank Wei Wei, Lin Lin and Yang Ke for those family parties and BBQs. Lastly, and by no means least, my warmest gratitude goes to my family. I am deeply indebted to my dearest parents, who have supported me no matter what and provided me with a foundation on which I could always fall back if necessary. 我亲爱的爸爸妈妈， 感谢你们一直以来尊重并支持我的选择，因为你们的关怀才有我今天的成绩。I am also grateful to my parents-in-law for their understanding. 感谢我的公公婆婆的包容和 理解。At the end I would like express appreciation to my beloved husband Hongyu. Thank you for always being there when I need you and support me through the ups and downs of this PhD journey. Chapter One INTRODUCTION 1.1 Introduction In much of the Western world, the common image of Chinese television is often one of tradition, seriousness, and political control. That may have been the case before the turn of the century; however, with the diffusion of economic reforms into the media domain, Chinese television has been used to promote economic modernisation, and the state’s ideology has become ‘de-emphasized’ (Lee 1990). Since China entered into the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, broadcasting in the nation has become relatively more liberalised—both in terms of organisation and of programming—introducing new TV channels with more Western-style entertainment including reality television shows. In 2008, the Shanghai Entertainment Channel started to air a new type of TV programme: a reality television mediation show called Xin Lao NiangJiu (新老娘舅, hereafter XLNJ; literal meaning: New Elder Uncle1). The show quickly became very popular in Shanghai and its surrounding areas. According to the China Television Annual Book (Wang 2010,451), it was ranked 17 out of the Year 2009 Top 30 most popular programmes in Shanghai, achieving on average 8.2 percent audience ratings (about 1.81 million people) and 27 percent market share2. At the time, it was unprecedented and innovative to show people’s mediation on TV, which made the show a unique television genre. On the show, people who have a dispute were invited to talk about their contentious issues, and these are then discussed live and ideally solved with the help of a mediator—usually a judge, a lawyer, or a People’s Mediator, who has good knowledge of 1 In the Chinese context, the term Niangjiu refers specifically to a maternal uncle.