Abstract
Investigative journalists form a very small but highly interesting subgroup amongst journalists in China. The study of this group can provide information not only about journalism but also about the limits and liberties which critical groups and networks have in an authoritarian state like China. Investigative journalists are therefore often mentioned when discussing journalism and critical debate in China, but so far it has been a challenge to find extensive and recent information on the size and individual variation within this group. The value of this edited volume is that it brings together a wealth of new, solid information on investigative journalists, mainly based on empirical work carried out by scholars both within and outside of China.
The book contains both quantitative and qualitative research. Chapter 3 can be seen as the heart of the book. In it, Fei Shen and Zhi’an Zhang introduce a database they compiled on investigative journalism, based on questionnaires filled out by 259 reporters whom they identified as investigative journalists. This database not only gives valuable information on the number, gender, age, education, geographical spread and income of investigative journalists in China, it also provides an inventory of their ideals and beliefs. It contextualizes partial studies on specific aspects such as the study undertaken by Marina Svensson and Haiyan Wang. The database shows that less than one in six investigative journalists is female. Svensson and Wang conducted a series of interviews to find out why women are so heavily under-represented in investigative reporting in China.
As indicated by the title, the book focuses on the values, experiences and ideas of investigative journalists themselves rather than on an analysis of their journalistic production. This does not only make the book a fascinating and entertaining read, it also leads to surprising insights in the tensions between what journalists want to achieve and what they can actually achieve in present-day China. We also obtain an intimate view of the varied techniques they use in trying to achieve their goals. These insights are illuminating precisely because of their sometimes counter-intuitive nature. For instance, in his chapter on self-censorship in news production Zhi’an Zhang argues that, within the context of the Chinese authoritarian media system, self-censorship might actually increase rather than threaten media freedom, because well-chosen forms of self-censorship can enhance the chances of having a revealing story published. Certain forms of self-censorship might lead to what Zhang describes as a ‘marginal breakthrough’. Hongyi Bai, in his chapter on new role models amongst investigative journalists, comes up with the interesting observation that a new generation puts less stress on advocacy and more on neutrality, an unexpected observation when one is used to the rather intense and outspoken advocacy of most of the earlier investigative journalists.
The book is clearly the work of people who are aware of the multilayered nature of Chinese society. It describes the complex interactions between journalists and the subjects of their investigation, their colleagues, their audiences, the media they work for, commercial entities and local, regional and national government bodies. Jingrong Tong, in her informative chapter on local investigative journalism, shows which regional and local conditions play a role in the flowering of investigative journalism in certain regions rather than others.
The overall value of the book lies not so much in the creation of new theoretical insights but more in the accumulation of new knowledge based on questionnaires, interviews and case studies. One of the more interesting chapters is the one by Laura Dombernowsky, who, in her discussion on the new generation of Chinese journalism students, comes up with some disillusioning facts. She mentions that there is only ‘a very small minority of more radical students that feel committed to supervise the government and are willing to do so regardless of political consequences’ (p. 71). But then, if one looks at the limited number of investigative journalists Fei Shen and Zhi’an Zhang managed to identify for their database, it may become clear that the actual number of investigative journalists in China has always been very small compared to their significant role as shapers of the public debate in China.