China in the media, 3
We have four stories to touch on briefly for this installment of our examination of the Globe's China coverage.
The first is from today's travel section. It expounds the virtues of a trip to Hong Kong for the Lunar New Year celebration. Amongst the recommended activities is a long list of engineering feats and shopping excursions one should partake of while in Hong Kong.
Second we have an article by David Berman from the front page of the Report on Business. Berman argues that the spread between prices on domestic shares and shares available to overseas investors is abnormally large and indicative of overheating in the Chinese stock market. In fact he argues that it is "arguably the most dangerous thing facing the Chinese economy right now." This article demonstrates very limited reporting. It is essentially a repetition of a report from another analyst (Heather Bell) made the preceding day. It is also indicative of the chicken little phenomenon so common in much China reportage. No matter what, there always seem to be indicators of impending sky collapse to be found.
Third we have a short piece by James Christie for Globe Sports. It reports on the (already often covered) route for the Olympic flame, which will bypass Canada en route to Beijing for the opening of the 2008 summer Olympics. Apparently this isn't a snub. Although some commentators at other sources have suggested it is related to China's overall diplomatic displeasure with Canada. They would have us believe that the Lai Chang Xin issue, Falun Gong, and the government's insistence on human rights dialogue play an important role in flame route design.
Finally we have a very interesting article suggesting that China's reluctance to invest in Alberta's energy sector is due to political concerns. This report written by one of the Globe's chief reporters on China, Geoffrey York. York points out that China is a growing economic concern and a key global energy consumer. He points to experts, such as Wenran Jiang, who claim that China's reticence to do business in Alberta is due to poor relations between Ottawa and Beijing.
This is another excellent example of the focus on economic matters as central to the Chinese narrative. It is often suggested that China's authoritarianism is rooted in economic imperative, and that these imperatives drive international policies from energy investments to tourist classifications. While this article in particular is well researched and largely accurate it makes the commonly made mistake of conflating Chinese business interests with the Chinese government. While there are certainly close relationships between the two, especially in the energy sector, they are clearly two distinct entities. It generally leads to inaccuracies when one says "the Chinese" to refer to both the government and business interests in the same breath.