The Concept of ‘Local’ in Local Chinese Television: a Case Study of Southwest China’s Chongqing Television

Abstract

This paper explores the role of the 'local' in Chinese Television, concentrating on a study of media personnel in Southwest China's Chongqing Television. Using official documentation and interviews with a range of key personnel, this paper outlines the ways in which local television personnel understand the concept of 'local' and what they consider as the counterpart of the 'local'. Furthermore, it will look at the circumstances under which these understandings have been formulated and how they are exercised in daily programming. It argues that concepts of the local, national and international in the context of contemporary Chinese local TV are fairly pragmatic. This is because companies need to fulfil political functions, to serve the local government and to maximise their own commercial income. These findings can, arguably, aid in refining our understanding of questions of 'cultural identity' and the process of so-called 'cultural globalization'. This paper argues that concepts of the local, national and international in the context of contemporary Chinese local TV are fairly pragmatic. This is because companies need to fulfil political functions, to serve the local government and to maximise their own commercial income. These findings can, arguably, aid in refining our understanding of questions of 'cultural identity' and the process of so-called 'cultural globalization'. The aims of this research are to examine how the concepts of 'local', 'national' and 'international' are understood by the personnel of a local Chinese television station, how these concepts relate to each other, and finally how research into the Chinese local media can contribute to the general understanding of the notion of cultural globalization. It forms part of my ongoing doctoral work on Chinese local media.