Long before the death of CCP leader Deng Xiaoping was officially announced in February 1997, rumour about his critical health had widely spread. Hong Kong and overseas media were well-prepared for this "news" that could break anytime. Preparation began in early 1990s as Deng appeared less and less frequently on public occasions – a sign that a leader is no longer in good health.
It was and remains a common practice for the press to build up an archive for any old top Hong Kong and mainland politician whose days are deemed numbered. Among them the file size of Deng definitely ranked first. Taking the example of the newspaper I worked for at that time, layouts of some 10 pages for the profile about Deng had been created and constantly updated.
There was a weird and funny journalistic phenomenon. While all political journalists well knew that Deng was on the doorstep to another world, they were gorwingly anxious. To be precise, they were so prepared yet so nervous that they would not be the first to report the news. During a year or two preceding Deng's death, global media kept quoting sources to "report the death" of Deng. Some must-interview celebrities such as Hong Kong democrats were "pre-interviewed" and their "response" was included in Deng's profile.
With a news cake 99% baked, media could use least time and manpower to run the story.
On 19 February 1997, I left work before mid-night and slept at about 1-2am on 20 February. As soon as I woke up, I heard radio broadcasting "the news". I rang my boss, the political editor of a popular, "pro-democracy Chinese daily. I told her I could return office immediately to help. She said with ease that "everything is ok. All you need to do is to enjoy reading the detailed report by our paper". Of course, she did not do the story alone and overnight. She simply gave a "print" signal after she reckoned that the news had been confirmed.
A print media, we were not the first to report. CTN or Zhontian(中天頻道), a 24-hour-a-day Chinese TV channel funded by the boss of Hong Kong Ming Pao, was it. At 00.15am, 20 February, it reported the death, about three hours after Deng passed away. CTN was followed by other electronic media. This was a huge bet for them. If official Xinhua News Agency had not issued a formal announcement hours later, they would all end up being accused of being the first to report inaccurately!
Basically, the structure of the news script by all media was as simple as "At 9.03pm yesterday, Hong Kong time, Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of the open-door policy and top cadre of the PRC, died at the age of 92 [followed by a 30-min profile of Deng about his achievements and life]".
Yesterday marked 10 years after Mr Deng's death. Few days earlier, the media had started working on stories in memory of Deng. Some reported on what the mainland had become as a result of Deng's reform policy and that Hong Kong and Macau people could live they way they had been given Deng's promise to keep the cities unchanged for 50 years. Some even interviewed old folks of Deng in his home county Guang An, Sichuan Province, and citizens in Shenzhen, which was designated as the first PRC Special Economic Zone by Deng.
Ironically, while Deng guaranteed 50 years of no change, the cities' media seemed to have their news judgment delicately adjusted. Reports about Deng did not hit any front page headline of Hong Kong papers. Nor were post-Deng issues discussed by their editorials from 18-20 February.
This was in line with the stance of the central government which stayed low-profile, with no commemorative activities for the late cadre, no comprehensive reviews done by national media like CCTV, Xinhua and China Daily.
On the contrary and a scne virtually non-existent ten years ago, the netizens are far more enthusiastic about Deng. There are heated debates on Deng's contribution online. Some worship Deng on the internet. On the Sina website, as many as 36,000 users have honoured Deng with "flowers" at a corner specially dedicated for him.
It was and remains a common practice for the press to build up an archive for any old top Hong Kong and mainland politician whose days are deemed numbered. Among them the file size of Deng definitely ranked first. Taking the example of the newspaper I worked for at that time, layouts of some 10 pages for the profile about Deng had been created and constantly updated.
There was a weird and funny journalistic phenomenon. While all political journalists well knew that Deng was on the doorstep to another world, they were gorwingly anxious. To be precise, they were so prepared yet so nervous that they would not be the first to report the news. During a year or two preceding Deng's death, global media kept quoting sources to "report the death" of Deng. Some must-interview celebrities such as Hong Kong democrats were "pre-interviewed" and their "response" was included in Deng's profile.
With a news cake 99% baked, media could use least time and manpower to run the story.
On 19 February 1997, I left work before mid-night and slept at about 1-2am on 20 February. As soon as I woke up, I heard radio broadcasting "the news". I rang my boss, the political editor of a popular, "pro-democracy Chinese daily. I told her I could return office immediately to help. She said with ease that "everything is ok. All you need to do is to enjoy reading the detailed report by our paper". Of course, she did not do the story alone and overnight. She simply gave a "print" signal after she reckoned that the news had been confirmed.
A print media, we were not the first to report. CTN or Zhontian(中天頻道), a 24-hour-a-day Chinese TV channel funded by the boss of Hong Kong Ming Pao, was it. At 00.15am, 20 February, it reported the death, about three hours after Deng passed away. CTN was followed by other electronic media. This was a huge bet for them. If official Xinhua News Agency had not issued a formal announcement hours later, they would all end up being accused of being the first to report inaccurately!
Basically, the structure of the news script by all media was as simple as "At 9.03pm yesterday, Hong Kong time, Deng Xiaoping, the chief architect of the open-door policy and top cadre of the PRC, died at the age of 92 [followed by a 30-min profile of Deng about his achievements and life]".
Yesterday marked 10 years after Mr Deng's death. Few days earlier, the media had started working on stories in memory of Deng. Some reported on what the mainland had become as a result of Deng's reform policy and that Hong Kong and Macau people could live they way they had been given Deng's promise to keep the cities unchanged for 50 years. Some even interviewed old folks of Deng in his home county Guang An, Sichuan Province, and citizens in Shenzhen, which was designated as the first PRC Special Economic Zone by Deng.
Ironically, while Deng guaranteed 50 years of no change, the cities' media seemed to have their news judgment delicately adjusted. Reports about Deng did not hit any front page headline of Hong Kong papers. Nor were post-Deng issues discussed by their editorials from 18-20 February.
This was in line with the stance of the central government which stayed low-profile, with no commemorative activities for the late cadre, no comprehensive reviews done by national media like CCTV, Xinhua and China Daily.
On the contrary and a scne virtually non-existent ten years ago, the netizens are far more enthusiastic about Deng. There are heated debates on Deng's contribution online. Some worship Deng on the internet. On the Sina website, as many as 36,000 users have honoured Deng with "flowers" at a corner specially dedicated for him.
