Don't be too CNN

On my way back from sapporo to KL... I have been trying to follow the news on the Beijing Olympic Torch relay wherever I go. Never thought I turned out to be such a big Olympic fan!! Well, I don't really have a choice -- it is like the next big news after the United States' presidential primaries!

As I travel to different parts of the world, I realised how media coverages are so very different in different parts of the world. Take the Iraq war for instance, CNN, FOX, BBC, NHK, Al-Jazeera and HK Phoenix had different news coverage, having CNN & FOX being so polarized towards one end and Al-Jazeera at the other. BBC is slightly better than both CNN and FOX. The same incident could be interpreted into two different situations. NHK would basically be doing similiar coverage as the United States as they share the same sources eventually. I do like HK phoenix alot as it has broader coverage, and a more objective view on international issues. I was impressed that they have their own crews on the ground doing the news coverage.

The torch relay received so much attention due to the vast coverage on the protests by the Tibet exile group that tries to sabotage it. It is amazing that everything seemed to be falling into place, first the riot then the protests, as if all these are masterminded. The news actually came out not showing the torch relay itself but the protests. I guess people are still more interested in the protests than the torch. Who cares about Olympic Games anyways.

I was in my Japanese host family house when the news about the protests was on TV every 2 hours. My host mother was pretty upset about the Chinese Government for the Tibet issues and the destroying of the residential areas to make way for the Olympic games. China to her, has a very, very negative image, to my surprise. And even the most educated person in Japan could easily share the same view. I, myself, being able to access good and bad news from all Chinese, Hongkong, Taiwan, Japanese and Western media, was worried that how badly she is influenced by the media. It seems that she only got the bad portion of the pie and never really got the other part of the story. Man, how media can actually mold ones mind in the 21st century!!

News are for you to judge and not to believe.

Sometimes, it is very hard for one to know the truth as media these days aren't so reliable. I came across this web the other day: http://www.anti-cnn.com/ and it was a site made by some Chinese netizens revealing some renowned international media actually distorting news by using old or fake photos. That actually disgusts me very much: media, being a voice of the people, has actually became so corrupted.

As the media sees a weaning in the coverage of anti-Chinese protests, there was an increase in the news of the french-boycott and pro-China rallies in the media. Not to my surprise, it only gets attention in Asian media, only very few done in BBC and none in CNN.

I also came across this really funny song done by an amateur singer, called "Don't be to CNN". It is part of the ant-CNN campaign which is gaining support from Chinese around the globe. Recently "Don't be too CNN" became a common sentence in China, especially among millions of young people.



Well, my advice would be, never trust the media. At least, don't trust just one. I think the only way to seek truth is to go through different sources, so we are never blinded by just one. :)

Okay, enough of my serious talk. Any one wants party this weekend??! :)