That's entertainment
There are times when a Chinese press junket resembles nothing so much as a secondary school field trip; particularly when the news at hand is entertainment news. Perhaps there's something inherently frivolous about reporting on a film or an album release. Maybe it has to do with the average age of entertainment journalists, which is about 25.
Last month, for example, more than 20 writers and photographers were sent from Beijing to Kaifeng , Henan province, to document the progress of a feature film being shot. Upon arrival, the convoy was squeezed into a tour bus and taken to see the sights of Kaifeng. There was an instant atmosphere of gleeful release, as though school was just out - the women cooing over the magnificent architecture, the men making wisecracks in the back of the bus.
Kaifeng's famous night market was visited and trinkets purchased. Photographers used their expensive, professional equipment to snap souvenir photos. The Churchillian V-for-victory sign was everywhere.
Where on Earth had this instant camaraderie come from? A few of these people had met each other previously, but most were strangers. It was hard to imagine how this cheerful group dynamic could have come about so quickly. But China is famous for feats of social uniformity.
While recent history has not featured the drama of communal farms or the Cultural Revolution, the educated youth of China do go through an experience nearly as all-consuming: secondary school. For four years, at an impressionable time of life, students' lives are sacrificed to their schooling: it's classes all day, homework all night and little freedom. For four years, most students' only coherent desire (besides a high score in the college entrance exam) is to be able to sleep in, and who could blame them? All opportunities for fun and freedom must be seized.
This attitude reappears often in professional life, and not just in journalism. People in their 20s, in all walks of life, are products of a system that left no space for individual initiative. In the absence of an assignment handed down from above, the proper response is to play.
The news that interviews on the film set were being reduced to a 10-minute photo session was received with minimal complaint. On the night train back to Beijing, almost the entire group crammed into a single hard-sleeper compartment, playing truth-or-dare type games and telling stories of, yes, their secondary school days. The hilarity continued until neighbouring passengers stomped over to complain. Phone numbers and instant-messaging addresses were exchanged; plans were made for future fun.
