tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post8761019625518380850..comments2023-12-04T10:02:29.445-06:00Comments on Mark's China Blog: Sometimes the More Information You Have, the Less You KnowMarkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00967364257656897151noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-6932551479963006822010-03-19T04:23:53.104-05:002010-03-19T04:23:53.104-05:00Ah, "the plane dispute" story... yes, a ...Ah, "the plane dispute" story... yes, a highly significant event in the life of the young author...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-14070847166315279032010-03-14T22:49:59.725-05:002010-03-14T22:49:59.725-05:00I'm about half-way through with Country Drivin...I'm about half-way through with Country Driving and I agree with you, Richard.<br /><br />Except for me, I think Oracle Bones is my favorite. Then River Town. Then Country Driving.<br /><br />But as you say, we're splitting hairs. They're all wonderful and I recommend them all to anyone interested in deepening their understanding of China.<br /><br />A friend of mine recently joked that Neil Conan on NPR's "Talk of the Nation" is his hero. I totally understood what he meant by that. We laughed at how big of nerds we are.<br /><br />I then said that "Peter Hessler is my Neil Conan" and explained who Hessler is to him. Hessler's writing and thoughts on China are inspiring to me. I'm in awe. He and Michael Lewis (can't wait to read his <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Big-Short-Inside-Doomsday-Machine/dp/0393072231/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1268624882&sr=1-1" rel="nofollow">new book</a>) make me very happy when I read their books.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967364257656897151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-23733452910877328922010-03-14T22:13:42.166-05:002010-03-14T22:13:42.166-05:00I'm finishing Country Driving now. I have to a...I'm finishing Country Driving now. I have to admit, I liked Oracle Bones more, and River Town even more. But Hessler set the bar very high with River Town; Country Driving is still a wonderful read, but it can't compete with River Town. What can?Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06755525978623589803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-16744116958536529232010-03-10T22:27:20.692-06:002010-03-10T22:27:20.692-06:00Great link, 李治. Pretty much echoes what I'm tr...Great link, 李治. Pretty much echoes what I'm trying to say in this article. China's a tough nut to crack.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967364257656897151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-65702440372045944312010-03-10T09:14:19.815-06:002010-03-10T09:14:19.815-06:00Just while I think of it Mark, here's a link t...Just while I think of it Mark, here's a link that fits nicely with your topic here:<br />http://www.theage.com.au/business/china-the-intangible-20100307-pqpk.htmlRichardhttp://www.notesfromxian.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-17378157993417732712010-03-08T19:00:01.773-06:002010-03-08T19:00:01.773-06:00@Adam - Thanks a lot for the comments. I started t...@Adam - Thanks a lot for the comments. I started to read your review but had to stop since I don't want to spoil any of my reading of the book! I'm on page 50 or so. Am looking forward to getting more into it.<br /><br />Your site looks really well done. Will definitely keep checking in on it. Thanks for those book recommendations as well.<br /><br />@Maitreya - I can see what you're saying.<br /><br />Personally, I didn't mean for this post to be a critique of western journalism in China. Sure, there are lots of examples of shoddy work. Especially when it comes to major American media outlets like Fox News, CNN, network news. But when diggin a little bit deeper, I think that there is some good and worthwhile reporting in newspapers and news services.<br /><br />And like you say, China doesn't make it any easier to do good work with the way they handle those writing the stories.<br /><br />I suppose the main point of this post is that, a year ago, I was looking to news as a way for me to understand China better. In many ways, it did help me understand the landscape and the nuances of the country in a more defined way. But at the same time, it did have its limitations. Trying to figure what's going on using a news cycle can paint a skewed and sensationalistic picture.<br /><br />I lived in China for three and a half years. I'm married to a Chinese woman. I have a lot of Chinese friends. Those experiences, more than knowing about geo-political politics or economics, help me understand China.<br /><br />Despite how much time and energy I've put into China, I still feel perplexed on a frequent basis.<br /><br />@Josh - It's good to hear from you again. I just checked out your blog and see that you and your Mrs. moved out of Xinjiang. Are you guys going to go back ever? Regardless, I'm glad that you'll have internet access again. Look forward to checking up on your blog again.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967364257656897151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-64014239957674386212010-03-08T14:26:15.110-06:002010-03-08T14:26:15.110-06:00I really enjoy reading Hessler's stuff, too. ...I really enjoy reading Hessler's stuff, too. I actually read Oracle Bones twice, and I think I liked it so much because of how much information I was able to learn about Xinjiang. His bibliography was gold!<br /><br />Like you, I can't wait to buy the newest one. Glad to see you blogging.Joshhttp://www.farwestchina.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-33374799185297578302010-03-08T09:02:20.647-06:002010-03-08T09:02:20.647-06:00Good Post.
Many journalists and analysts in the w...Good Post.<br /><br />Many journalists and analysts in the western media often let their own personal prejudice cloud their professionalism.<br /><br />I'm often surprised and appalled at the amount of misrepresentation that China receives in the west.<br /><br />It might be simply to make their news more dramatic and headlines eye-catching, or it may simply amount to spreading misinformation about China.<br /><br />Or, it just might be that some people are concerned about the eventual end of western domination.<br /><br />The restriction on journalistic access to some regions of China is further used as an excuse to print biased reports and unverified facts. But that is certainly no excuse to print downright lies and misleading statements.<br /><br />I think that a large part of the western media acts rather irresponsibly when publishing news about China.<br /> - MaitreyaMaitreya Bhakalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14995317283182467753noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-26336097261989527742010-03-08T06:03:55.408-06:002010-03-08T06:03:55.408-06:00Mark, I love the web and nice to meet you. I came ...Mark, I love the web and nice to meet you. I came across this latest post after catching up at Dan Harris' blog (China Law Blog).<br /><br />I strongly second your views about Hessler's stuff. Pete definitely has the gift and practically everything he writes which I read affects me similarly: profoundly and with deep lingering sentiment.<br /><br />I just finished Country Driving last night:<br />http://www.adamdanielmezei.com/peter-hessler-strikes-thriceand-this-time-dangerously-behind-the-wheel/1990<br /><br />and I'd say it's more on the Factory Girls (Leslie Chang, his wife) tip, but nevertheless there's lots of stuff there to choose and plenty of points of conversational departure. Actually, I like how it reveals more about Hessler's personality more than anything, rather than the various subjects (and there are plenty to be found within its pages) which he chooses to place under his writerly microscope.<br /><br />If you haven't yet read Rob Gifford's China Road, Hessler's Country Driving will be interesting. Gifford's book will shock you. I prefer the former as a travelogue, but this is Peter Hessler we're talking about. :-)<br /><br />Good to see you here.Adam Daniel Mezeihttp://adamdanielmezei.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-77296977677869110982010-03-07T15:48:01.476-06:002010-03-07T15:48:01.476-06:00@Ramesh - Thanks a lot. China is indeed a fun plac...@Ramesh - Thanks a lot. China is indeed a fun place to observe.<br /><br />@Richard - Go for it! As a blogger, it'll be fun to get well into everything going on in China.<br /><br />@ank - lo lo lo - I'm just speaking out my observations. Last year, when I spent tons and tons of time trying to read everything going on in China, I learned a lot. But I also got a little bit too focused on minutiae. Stepping back can be useful.<br /><br />@Hopfrog - Oh, I remember the discussion(s) with Pugster about the Western media! Like you, I agree that a critical media is a very important aspect of a functioning society. It's a shame China doesn't have a better one and America's has devolved so terribly (excluding NPR, of course). ;)<br /><br />Hessler is the man. Such a great writer and insightful person. Am a few pages from finishing Oracle Bones and beginning Country Driving.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00967364257656897151noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-84346205414083414342010-03-07T14:16:11.206-06:002010-03-07T14:16:11.206-06:00Going back to River Town for a second, Hessler mad...Going back to River Town for a second, Hessler made an analogy I use constantly about western media and Chinese media and this entry today further reiterates it.<br /><br />Western media activism is so often times misinterpreted as western governmemtal meddling, because in China, the media is, well, a mouthpiece of the government. I am glad to see small time corruption scandals being exposed in Chinese media nowadays, but could you ever imagine something like Watergate going down in China? yeah, me neither.<br /><br />Again, great insights from you and Peter and I look forward to how the two of your views compare over the same time period of being in China.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-43308096283568129842010-03-07T12:34:19.515-06:002010-03-07T12:34:19.515-06:00right. but i'm not sure your are saying to ins...right. but i'm not sure your are saying to inspire, you are speaking out the facts.ank - lo lo lohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14814150909793081716noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-31021383293734755712010-03-07T04:32:07.214-06:002010-03-07T04:32:07.214-06:00Good to see you back in the groove Mark with these...Good to see you back in the groove Mark with these last few posts. I agree wholeheartedly with your observations above although I am at present trying to get myself a little more acquainted with the other side of this particular coin.Richardhttp://www.notesfromxian.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4097293516411888153.post-81233737038281942402010-03-06T18:51:03.814-06:002010-03-06T18:51:03.814-06:00Wonderful post Mark. Very perceptive , your take o...Wonderful post Mark. Very perceptive , your take on news in China. Yes, sometimes when we step back a little, we understand more.<br /><br />China is truly a fascinating country.Rameshhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11782192840421019943noreply@blogger.com