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January 19, 2015

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Home » Opinion » Chinese Views

Shaming of public officials on TV talk show should make more than good theater

By Ni Tao | January 19, 2015, Monday | Print Edition

CHINESE officials have often been described as being shy and stiff under the media spotlight. Partly to improve their performance in the face of public scrutiny, some officials in Wuhan, capital of Hubei Province, have been frequently asked to appear on a TV talk show.

Launched with the intention to confront officials on their failure to carry out duties, the TV show has generated quite a few headlines, some verging on sensationalism. For instance, Peng Qiaodi, female governor of the city’s Caidian District, was greatly embarrassed when the host dramatically challenged her to eat a tangerine coated in a layer of cement. The polluted tangerine, which came from a grove near a cement plant, was reportedly an attempt to remind the governor of severe pollution in her jurisdiction, where no action had been taken against the cement plant despite complaints from the grove owners.

Cornered, Peng chose to rise to the tangerine challenge. However grudgingly, she peeled the tangerine and ate it in full glare of the public, and managed to find the courage to comment on its “sweetness.”

She is not the only official to be caught off guard. One of her colleagues perhaps felt even more bitter about being publicly shamed, or indeed, humiliated.

During a broadcasting session of the show on January 6, Wang Li, party secretary of the Wuchang District, was asked to recite the 24-word socialist core values, a slogan urging patriotism, dedication and honesty among Chinese citizens, especially officials. Nervousness set in. His mind suddenly went blank, as he struggled to recite the slogan in broken sentences. It took him nearly 2 minutes to pull through this ordeal.

Answering thorny questions

The idea of the TV show is to get officials to leave the cocoon of their official compounds, face the public and answer thorny questions from the host and citizens sitting in the audience. Usually, it starts with video footage taken on the sly that reveals problems to which officials have to respond. The audience voice approval or disapproval of the given answers by raising a sign with a smiling face or a tearful face.

The TV show, among the very first of its kind in China, has been immensely popular for it gives a vent for people to air their grievances, which sometimes are not properly dealt with or ignored.

Initiated in 2011 under the auspices of liberal senior cadres of Wuhan, the TV show has been widely commended as an effective way to exercise oversight via the media and public’s right to know. Many erring officials are put on the defensive and made to apologize or promise swift changes.

And the shaming of officials shows that indeed no facts are covered up, and no holds are barred. Many think the tangerine stunt was a way to stoke vicarious feelings among officials, so that they might develop a genuine attention to citizens’ plight.

But there are also some concerns about the merit of this grilling of officials, including fear that it might strengthen their bunker mentality, rather than the other way around.

At any rate, appearance on this show is a humbling experience, but exactly how humbling is debatable. If the “genuine apologies” and “promises” turn out to be empty, there is no point exaggerating the show’s significance. Nor will it be any more relevant than a reality show if it only satisfies the popular desire to make it hot for public figures.

Luckily, in the case of Wuhan, the program didn’t stop at reality shows. It is usually followed up by real changes. Exposes aired January 6 and 10 have prompted authorities to investigate allegations such as bribery, issuance of illegal perks, and official procrastination, and 18 cadres have been disciplined, suspended or sacked, media reported.

This reminds me of the 12345 hotline in Shanghai, set up to gather residents’ complaints, mainly about public service. Complaints are then passed on to officials, who are obliged to look into them and solve them. There will be follow-up reviews to keep them on their toes.

Although such forms of public scrutiny abound and are likely to be popularized even more across the country, it ought to be noted that they are as much a test of officials’ media savvy as a real platform for holding officials to account.

So a bit less drama and more substance is strongly advised, since what we really want is real solutions to problems, not just public crucifixion of officials.

Chinese Views


 

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