The title sounds judgmental, but it isn’t in the least. It’s the truth and, more importantly, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. I am, of course, generalizing the China Blogger Conference and all of the varied speakers, talks, and subject-matter presented over this weekend. While these have definitely included both foreigners and matters that both indirectly and directly affect foreigners both in and outside of China, the vast majority of foreigners will find this conference largely inaccessible and very distantly relevant to them. That almost all of the talks are made in Chinese is only the first, though arguably the largest reason.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong about that, that anyone is to be blamed, and that’s just the way it is. Writing for CNReviews, I have a naked emphasis on what I write about for the predominantly foreign audience we target, an audience we reason as having some basic desire to learn more about China and the Chinese people, so they can better understand both for whatever ends they themselves may have. I have an idea of what this audience may think, how this audience might react, and how I want to influence you. I hope I’m not clearing any mystique or exposing any secrets here.
The takeaway from CNBloggerCon for our audience is that it happens, that a group of Chinese people are bringing other Chinese people together to share, discuss, and promote that which matters to them, that their ideals, ideas, and motivations are being acted upon, that they’re not the sheep too many people too often dismiss them as. Here, they talk about charity, censorship, human rights, artistic expression, professional collaboration, internet phenomenon, and driving or contributing to the continued positive development of China, both online and off. Those of us who are here to see what could be shared with foreign audience are like the Chinese who hopped online to watch Obama accept the American presidency, beholders instead of participants, more eavesdroppers than the target audience. Nevertheless, we are impressed and moved, even if we knew there was no rational reason to feel otherwise.
This is what I can tell you, what I can offer you as a lowly blogger here on behalf of a blog that seeks to bridge China with the West, in hopes that you’ll remember, be impressed, and accord due respect. I won’t tell you about the backwater poverty-stricken schools too few of you could ever find. I won’t tell you about the pseudo-celebrity Chinese Twitterati too few of you could follow. I won’t tell you about the Chinese university students aiming to create a youth-oriented print magazine too few of you could read. But I can share some reasons for expanding our mindsets and our perspectives on mainland China, the Chinese, and what they’re up to.
If you don’t need the reminder, are already impressed, and already accord due respect, then you’re ahead of the game, and you are already a good participant in this ongoing and growing global dialog. Thank you. I need you, CNR needs you…even if and as much as you don’t need us.
For more English-language coverage of the 2009 CNBloggerCon, be sure to look for updates from Jeremy Goldkorn at Danwei (China mirror) and Sky Canaves at the WSJ’s China Real Time Report.
Image credits: Former CNR blogger and Twitter Beast David Feng.
Kai, sometimes your arrogance is astounding
The feeling is mutual!
谢谢你 那个! 我说得还可以, 当然很傲慢
哇！来了几句中文，真了不起！
don’t act like you’re not impressed
Kai why are you always so hostile? I get the feeling like your’e always on the defensive with any random comment made by a laowai.
Thirsty-For-Knowledge,
I’m not sure why you feel that way because I have plenty of civil, even great, discussions with laowais all the time.
Look, I have my fair share of disagreements with people who have different opinions, in both English and Chinese (though maybe you don’t see the Chinese ones for understandable reasons). This is natural. We are, after all, on the internet discussing things that we care about. The English disagreements will understandably often involve laowais but so? I don’t understand why you’re framing my disagreements on laowai and non-laowai terms anyway. Why is that important? I don’t disagree with people just because they are laowais, do I? Do you?
Next, I have my fair share of trolls, some of which make regular appearances on CNR. I’m generally not above a little verbal sparring with them and Zuo Ai, above, is one of them. Interestingly, I’m usually accused of being on the offensive (instead of defensive) with any random comment made by a laowai, by people who think I shouldn’t take a laowai to task for saying something I find intolerably disagreeable because, ostensibly, a laowai should be entitled to any cathartic letting-off-of-steam no matter how offensive or irrational.
I don’t think I’m “always hostile”, but my detractors certainly do. That’s fair, because I happen to think they’re usually hostile to me too. The feeling is mutual, as shown above with Zuo Ai. That’s the nature of the relationship between people who strongly disagree. I don’t expect everyone to agree with me. I don’t think I’m “always on the defensive with any random comment” much less “any random comment made by a laowai.” I beg you to re-consider the impression you have of me by reviewing the entire record. You are, of course, as with my other detractors, entitled to maintain it.
BTW, I agreed with your earlier comment in this post. I just didn’t feel it necessary to comment that I agreed though since most people who follow my posts and comments already know that about me.
Hey, Kai, need any help untwisting those knickers?
Also: your assertion that CNBloggerCon is for Chinese, not foreigners is exactly what we don’t need – the extension of this crazily dualistic wordlview that a large number of Chinese seem to hold. I would have thought that you, of all people, would be opposed to the ‘Chinese/foreigner’ dichotomy.
Guess what? Nothing’s black and white! The sooner people start to realise this, the sooner we can achieve more constructive debate.
Duncan,
My opinion that CNBloggerCon is far more accessible to Chinese people than foreigners is less an assertion than an observation. I don’t WANT it to be that way, I don’t support an extension of “this crazily dualistic worldview”, I’m just calling it for what it is.
What part of my post suggests that 1) CNBloggerCon is intentionally projecting any sort of Chinese/foreigner dichotomy and/or 2) I’m in support of such dichotomies? What part of my post suggests I think anything is black and white? What part of my post suggests I disagree with all of us achieving more constructive debate the sooner people start to realize nothing’s black and white?
Did you actually read my post?
I’m pretty certain you know I’m not impressed in the least. It’s the nature of our relationship.
With the additional exposure English language blogs about China receive, the more us Laowais realize that we cannot continue to live within our little padded bubbles. China is going through an amazing array of developments in every area imaginable be it social, technological, political, etc. If we continue to be ignorant spectators who stubbornly refuse to learn the language, integrate, and take an active part in these advancements we’ll miss out on this truly awesome turn of highly significant events.
About the time I started to think, “Geez, this intro is kinda long”, the post ended. I’m ready to read the rest of it now. :-)
LoL, I have a few more stories from CNBloggerCon I want to share and I’ll try to get around to them today but overall, I’m not going to write any in-depth coverage of the presentations I saw (some of which I alluded to above). If you’re interested, I can provide links to the Chinese Powerpoints (if they’re uploaded) and, as I mentioned above, perhaps Danwei and China Real Time Report will have more coverage than CNR. I generally feel my readers are more like Zuo Ai above than you.
Oh, one thing I want to throw out. Many of us had to leave for the airport in the middle of an interesting but very political panel session near the end of day two. @DavidFeng even uploaded a Twitpic of what he suspected being a government “spy” that appeared amongst us on day two. If there was anything that might’ve worried the government, it might’ve been that panel session, but again, we only saw half of it.
Interesting that you took pains to point out it was a sort of Chinese version of FUBU yet the picture in the post shows two t-shirts with English lettering and one with approximation of Chinese and American flags side by side.
…and?