A stint at the China Daily Online

Michele Ong, AUT journalism graduate working for the Rodney Times, spent three months in China earlier this year on an AUT University-China Daily Exchange Internship organised by AUT's Pacific Media Centre with Asia:NZ Foundation funding for air travel at the online arm of China’s national English newspaper, China Daily.com.cn. Here are some of her experiences and tips she shared on her return.

I WENT to Beijing in April 2010 - by then I had already been working for the Rodney Times for three months, but my editor was very supportive of me and granted me three months off.

The organisation is comprised of the newspaper, China Daily, and the website, ChinaDaily.com.cn. Both are independent of each other in terms of operation but share the same masthead. I worked as a copy-editor for the website’s travel and culture department.

I had an amazing experience working in Beijing—I definitely enjoyed my time there.

Working for the website’s travel department, I spent my days editing travel brochures and cultural stories. Although it sounds cushy, the reality of it is quite different. The brochures were often many pages long (I once edited a 16-page long article on Anhui province which took me a good three days. I later discovered it was bound, printed and distributed to visitors).

The brochures were also often translated into English from Mandarin by a freelance translator or someone who works for the local government tour board. So deciphering the sentences can sometimes be a major challenge as well as a huge test of patience. I did the best I could with those stories.

But what I’ve learnt is as long as you are enthusiastic, polite and willing to learn, the local colleagues are more than happy to help you understand the mumbo-jumbo that’s in front of you. It can be tempting at times to just do a “whatever” job in editing the pieces—after all, it’s not like they are none the wiser, right? Wrong. I checked with a local colleague and he told me they can sort of tell if you’ve put any effort into editing the stories.

Sometimes you’d have the reporters coming back to you asking about the changes you’d made to their work. The thing to remember is, they are not undermining your work, but they are just keen to learn. If I was not pressed for time, I would explain to them the changes that I’d made. They were usually very grateful for any input.

Travelling to Anhui
During my internship, I was very fortunate to be given the opportunity to travel to Anhui province with a local colleague. Anhui’s local tourism board had just launched a campaign to promote tourism in their city and was keen to have two China Daily reporters do a write-up.

The board sponsored me and my colleague’s accommodation and food. The local tourism board put us up in a fancy hotel by Shanghai’s The Bund before arranging a two-day tour for us at Anhui, where we climbed Huangshan Mountain and visited an ancient town. My job was to do a write-up of the trip. It can be found here.

Although it was a very tiring week, with lots of late nights (I was basically my colleague’s editor on demand. She would write the story and have me edit it before sending it back to the website), early mornings and crazy long hours on the road (I counted I had spent at least 33 hours on the road in just a week), it was definitely one of my highlights working with China Daily.

When I whined to my local friend about my five hour bus trip from Huangshan Mt to Hefei, capital of Anhui, followed by a 12-hour ride from Hefei back to Beijing (all on the same day), he said “You’re now travelling like a local!”.

Living in Beijing
My work hours were 8.30pm till 5.30pm with an hour’s lunch break. I was given an allowance of 2000 yuan a month (NZD400). I was given an apartment at the newspaper’s compound.

Because I was a “foreign expert” I had the whole apartment, fully furnished, to myself (I even got the newspaper delivered to my room every morning. It’s unbelievable). It got a bit lonely at times, going home to an empty apartment but I can’t complain because it beats having to share it with a stranger. I didn’t have to pay for rent, although I did have to pay for utilities which were a flat rate of 300 yuan a month (NZD60). If you’re too caught up in other work to sweep and mop your apartment (Beijing is one very dusty city), for 50 kuai (NZD10) you can get the apartment service lady to come and tidy your apartment for you.

As for my meals, I initially had my breakfast, lunch and dinner at the newspaper’s canteen but I soon got bored with it and would only have lunches there with my colleagues. Canteen food costs on average eight yuan (approx NZD 2.50) for rice and two meat/vegetable options.

I found my three month stint at Beijing to be a bit short, although I’m sure my editor would dispute this. At times I found the Chinese capital overwhelming with its traffic jams and its crowds (people everywhere!) but I soon got used to it. It took me about a month to get used to the work environment and find my way around Beijing using the subway.

Tips for surviving in Beijing:
• Learn basic Chinese. I majored in Chinese when I was at university, so I can understand and speak the language, even if I’m not very fluent for lack of practice. However, basic knowledge of Chinese will be an advantage. If all fails, have an English-Chinese app loaded on to your iPhone, a complete life saver.

• Make contact with the intern who went before you. I got in touch with Guanny Liu who went in 2009.

• Do make friends with the locals. I found them to be very friendly and helpful. They helped me settle down and even took me to out during the weekends to popular tourist spots.

• Do make friends with the foreigners, because sometimes you just want to have some good old burger and fries.

• Do bring some food (optional) such as longlife milk, Milo, chocolates, biscuits… your favourite foods basically. You don’t want to be left out in the cold should homesickness strike.

• Do pack medication such as Panadol, cough drops, cold/flu and diarrhoea tablets.

• Do notify New Zealand Embassy you’re heading to Beijing.

• Go with an open mind and have fun

Pictures: Top: Michele Ong in news presenting mode with colleagues at the China Daily Online (Photo: David Robie); Michele in assignment in Anhui (Photo: Michele Ong); and a China Daily editorial conference (Photo: David Robie).

AUT's School of Communication Studies Asia-Pacific internships organised by the Pacific Media Centre with support by the Asia: NZ Foundation

Pacific Media Centre's Facebook for internship students

Kristina Koveshnikova's updated AUT 'survival kit' for Beijing.

PMC director calls for greater global outreach by NZ j-schools

Pacific Media Centre

New Zealand journalism schools need to be far more internationally minded and think outside the parochial square, says Pacific Media Centre director David Robie.

Just back from a six-week sabbatical trip to several Asian countries and Europe, Dr Robie says many New Zealand journalism graduates are doing well in countries such as China while pursuing an international career.

The PMC at AUT University has promoted a postgraduate internship programme with support from the Asia New Zealand Foundation for the past seven years and several graduates have used this as a springboard for a global career.

“New Zealand’s future lies in the Asia-Pacific region with an emphasis on Asia, especially China, our second largest trading partner,” he says. “Journalism courses here need to reflect that.

“Long gone are the days when journalism graduates saw the New Zealand media as their sole job market.”

AUT’s School of Communication Studies launched New Zealand’s first Asia-Pacific or international journalism paper in 2007 and Associate Professor Robie teaches the course.

During his sabbatical trip, Dr Robie visited the Communications University of China with AUT’s international relations director Chris Hawley; China Daily, the major state-run English newspaper and website where AUT graduates go on regular internships as foreign “experts” for copy polishing; a leading Hongkong university-based journalism school; Asian Media Information and Communication Centre (AMIC) in Singapore; Airlangga University’s communications school and the Jawa Pos news media network headquarters in Surabaya, Indonesia; Reporters San Frontières media freedom group in Paris; and the International Herald Tribune’s Asian bureau in Hongkong among other media and educational centres.

Internship strategy
In Beijing, he had discussions with the China Daily management about a strategy to boost AUT’s exchange scheme and improvements for the internship scheme.

He also met current intern Michele Ong and a former intern, Guanny Liu, who now works with a Beijing-based international radio station.

“The internship changed my life,” said Liu, who had been working for Radio New Zealand and worked on a China Daily internship after graduation before landing the Beijing job.

Both Ong and Liu speak Mandarin. Ong has just returned from a Shanghai Expo assignment and a travel reporting mission in Anhui province.

In Surabaya, Dr Robie gave a lecture to Airlangga media students about Asia-Pacific press freedom and comparisons between micro-island states and the Indonesian news industry environment.

Airlangaa postgraduate students have studied at AUT and a closer relationship between the two universities is being developed.

In Paris, Dr Robie met with Reporters Sans Frontières Asia-Pacific researcher Vincent Brossel and discussed plans for stronger South Pacific collaboration with the Pacific Media Centre, which operates the regional media monitoring project Pacific Media Watch and the news website Pacific Scoop.

Pictures: Top to bottom. Airlangga students in Surabaya, Indonesia, welcome David Robie; Michele Ong at the China Daily video newsreading desk; Beijing dinner - left to right (back): Michele Ong, Guanny Liu, Del Abcede and Bridgid Hawley, front: David Robie, "chairman" Chris Hawley and Ollie Fenwick-Ross; China Daily's 29th anniversary celebrations; a news conference at the China Daily; and David Robie with Jawa Pos editor Leak Kustiya. Photos: David Robie

Internship journo discovers the essence of China

By Michele Ong in Beijing: Pacific Media Centre

It was in Anhui that I both truly experienced and saw China.

Anhui province, with its stunning Huangshan mountain and beautiful old towns, was what I pictured China to be based on the movies I've watched and the books I've read.

I first glimpsed Huangshan Mountain at the photo exhibition put out by respected artist Wang Wusheng at the opening ceremony of “Memorable Tourism Anhui”. I was captivated by the mountain’s beauty the moment I saw the pictures.

By the end of the day, I was burning with curiosity at what Huangshan mountain really looked like in real life.

I visited Huangshan on my first day in Anhui. Truth be told, I was completely exhausted from my seven-hour bus journey the night before from Shanghai to Anhui and would happily trade climbing up Huangshan mountain if I could lie in bed a little longer.

Alas! We were to get up at 7am and be ready for the long day ahead by 8am.

On our way up to the mountain, we were given a brief introduction by our tour guide, Jeff, on Huangshan.

The mountain got its name from an emperor from the Qing Dynasty who spent his time studying the art of becoming a fairy.

Emperor's peak
After much persistence, he eventually attained fairydom. The local villagers, out of respect for their emperor, named the mountain Huangshan. Jeff then explained that “Huang di” means “emperor” in Mandarin. Huangshan Mountain loosely translates to Yellow Mountain.

I found climbing Huangshan mountain no means an easy feat. With every step I took, I felt like there was a ball chain attached to my ankles. Yet before me lay a series of never ending steps, beckoning me to climb further up, enticing me every step of the way with its lush greenery.

I felt pretty embarrassed with myself for complaining about sore calf muscles when I saw several men, strong as ox, balancing either a ton of bricks or sacks of food on their shoulders, hiking steadfastly up the mountain. All I had on me was a small satchel containing a bottle of water, a packet of crisps and an umbrella. Yet there I am griping about my sore legs.

By the time I reached its highest peak, Lotus Peak, I wasn’t sure if my legs were still with me. The last time I did any exercise was when I was still in New Zealand—I swam once a week. But ever since I came to China, all I did was eat 24/7 a day and did minimal exercise.

Despite complaining and huffing and puffing while making my way up the mountain, I had to say I had no regrets. I would’ve regretted it more if I gave up half way and made my way back to the cable car.

The mountain with its beautiful greenery and thousands of years old pine trees, growing gracefully between majestic rocks, were breathtaking.

The mountain air was both cool and refreshing.

Praying for blessings
Low lying clouds enveloped the mountain's peaks and trees, lending a calm and serene atmosphere. I could feel my earthly worries slowly disappearing as I stood in awe of the beauty before me. Little wonder its local tour brochure boasts its mountains as "the best places to go when praying for blessings".

Along my way up the mountain, I took the chance to slowly admire flowers and trees which grew in abundance. Whenever I’d start feeling a little bit tired from the climb, I’d rest a little while by the streams and watch crystal clear water gush over smooth brown rocks. There were times I wish I could set camp there. Then I’d get to admire its scenery all day long.

I wasn’t the only one who thought Huangshan mountain a beauty. Another visitor I spoke to, Andee Flueck, a Swiss working in Germany, said he found the mountain "mystical”.

An Italian tourist, Arianna Padella, told me that unless one moved outside from the city, one would never be able to appreciate what the country is like. I couldn’t have agreed more with both of them.

I’m currently working in Beijing and as much as I love the city for its tall modern buildings and vibrant nightlife, it still wasn’t really the China I was hoping to experience.

But now I could safely say I have truly experienced the essence of China in Anhui.

Michele Ong is an AUT University graduate journalist on an AUT and Pacific Media Centre internship with the China Daily in Beijing with airfare support from the Asia New Zealand Foundation. This story was first published on the China Daily travel website.

Other Michele Ong stories:
Ancient villages in Anhui
NZ's gaokao exams

Pasifika media scholarship winners set their goals

By Josephine Latu: Pacific Media Centre

Two new Pasifika scholarship students have joined the Bachelor of Communication Studies degree programme at AUT University this year - and hope to inspire young people in their communities to follow their lead.

Jordan Puati, 20, and Krissy Rangi, 18, have been awarded AUT/Pacific Islands Media Association (PIMA) Pasifika communication scholarships.

PIMA chair and Māori Television investigative journalist Iulia Leilua presented the prizes at the School of Communications Studies awards on March 31 – a special ceremony to celebrate student achievements and acknowledge supporters.

“The AUT/PIMA award is to support a new generation of Pacific people in their studies and to show them a career in the media is achievable. People are creative, but they need support,” said Leilua.

The AUT sponsorship covers tuition costs for both Rangi and Puati until they graduate, subject to annual reviews of progress.

“Pasifika students have the potential to tell our stories in an authentic way, and they also have the potential to show that they can have a mainstream perspective as well, rather than just being pigeonholed for Pacific Islands material,” she added.

Natural performer
Jordan Puati was born in London, raised in Wellington, before moving to the Cook Islands for his high school education.

A natural performer, Puati has travelled around the region performing Cook Islands music and dance, and is looking towards a career in TV presenting or advertising.

If he succeeds, Puati plans to use his profile to encourage youth in Pacific Island communities in New Zealand as well as the Cook Islands.

“It’s a big deal. For Cook Islanders, if they see someone else doing it, then it’s not so hard to do it themselves. It would feel good to give something back and to make things easier for other Pacific Islanders,” he said.

Although he is the only Pacific Islander in one of his classes, Puati sees it as a chance to give a Pasifika point of view.

“You don’t have to see your Pacific Island identity as a barrier. It’s a positive thing.”

Creative streak
Krissy Rangi is Samoan-Maori and has shown a strong creative streak since her years at Selwyn College in Mission Bay.

“I started being interested in photography, but now I’m interested in moving images. It’s fascinating,” she said.

For Rangi, media is relevant to young generations because of its creative potential, although it “needs to be suitable for the younger audiences because they are growing up too fast".

While she is also outnumbered in her classes as a Pacific Islander, Rangi urges Pasifika students not to be “put off”.

“Just do it,” she said. “I’m loving it. The programme is everything I wanted to do”

Former recipients of the award have gone on to successful careers in the industry, including Leilani Moimoisea (Radio New Zealand), Kitekei’aho Tu’akalau (Pacific Media Network), Christine Gounder (Radio NZ), John Pulu (TNews/TVNZ) and Taberannang Korauba (Pacific Community News).

Among other scholarships presented was the inaugural Kiwi Asian Journalism Scholarship sponsored by the Asia New Zealand Foundation, which has been awarded to nurse Corazon Miller, a fluent Tagalog speaker.

The foundation also supports the AUT/China Daily Journalism Scholarships, organised by the Pacific Media Centre. Michelle Ong and Lucy Mullinger have won the three-month internships in Beijing this year.

Winner of this year's inaugural Indian Newslink Postgraduate Journalism Scholarship is Imogen Crispe and Alisha Lewis has won the TVNZ Diversity Journalism Scholarship. PMC director Dr David Robie presented the Asia NZ Foundation scholarships on behalf of media adviser Charles Mabbett and the Indian Newslink award for editor Venkat Rahman.

News chief Cliff Joiner presented the TVNZ scholarship.

Pictures: Top: PIMA's deputy chair Chris Lakatani (fom left), Jordan Puati, PIMA chair Iulia Leilua and Krissy Rangi. Middle: Iulia Leilua; senior lecturer Rosemary Brewer presents the top year one BCS award to Kimberlee Downs, winner of last year's TVNZ diversity award; PMC's Dr David Robie with the China Daily scholarship winners Lucy Mullinger and Michelle Ong. Below: Scholarship winners Krissy Rangi, Corazon Miller, Lucy Mullnger, Michelle Ong and Imogen Crispe. Photos: Josephine Latu and Del Abcede



For more information on the AUT-PIMA and other diversity opportunities, visit the AUT School of Communications Studies scholarships webpage.

Awards and scholarships photo gallery

Cooking Chinese dishes for dummies

By Kristina Koveshnikova: Pacific Media Centre

China Daily has held its very first cooking classes for foreigners.

Lessons in preparing traditional Chinese cuisine were offered at the Yosemite village in Shunyi district, Beijing.

Chinese people enjoy good food and take pride in their famous dishes. Over the centuries cooking has developed into a very sophisticated art, with several types of dishes from north to south and east to west.

Chinese cuisine has become widespread in many other parts of the world, from Canada and America to as far as New Zealand.

The art of Chinese cooking is not at all difficult and anyone can learn how to make traditional Chinese dishes.

Chefs from a local restaurant were invited by China Daily to teach foreigners how to make popular Chinese dishes like spring rolls, kunpo chicken and dumplings.

Dozens of people from over seven different countries came along. Some even brought the whole family to the event.

After each cooking demonstration, guests had the opportunity to prepare the dishes themselves, using the skills they had just learned.

The dumplings seemed to be the hardest dish to prepare among the three，coming out in all sorts of different shapes and sizes.

But all the foreigners at the event agreed Chinese food is a lot easier to cook than it may appear.

So anyone can master it.

Happy cooking!

Pictured: Kristina (centre) takes a turn at Chinese cooking in Beijing (China Daily).

Kristina Koveshnikova is an AUT graduate journalist who is on a Pacific Media Centre internship with the China Daily sponsored by the Asia New Zealand Foundation.

Cooking Chinese dishes for dummies [video]

PMC welcomes Asian media pair for studies

By Josephine Latu: Pacific Media Centre

Two Asian journalists – from very diverse backgrounds – were welcomed by Dr Alan Cocker, head of AUT’s School of Communication Studies, in a cosy ceremony at the Pacific Media Centre today.

Wang Nan, 28, from China, and Violet Cho, 25, an indigenous Karen from Burma, will be attached to the centre while they pursue postgraduate studies at AUT.

Wang is a cultural affairs editor for China Daily.com and is on a semester-long exchange internship.

The Beijing native holds a degree in English language and literature, and counts painting and photography among her creative interests.

Her attitude reflects the mutual benefits of cultural exchange.

“If people want to know about Chinese culture and custom, I am happy to share my knowledge and work,” she said.

“But I also want to learn new things. Some of the paper courses I’m taking – like photography and design – I’ve never touched before.”

Her colleague, Cho, who writes for Irrawaddy magazine, is more interested in raising awareness about the challenges of her homeland as well as the Burmese community in New Zealand.

“It’s impossible for a people outside of a country to know what it’s really like in another society,” she said.

Cho’s childhood was spent moving between refugee camps, fleeing to Thailand because of the threats her family faced from the military due to her father’s involvement in the Karen National Union (KNU).

Now living in exile because of her activism and “dissident” reporting, Cho is this year’s inaugural winner of PMC’s Asian Journalism Fellowship. She hopes her BCS (Hons) degree will help her produce more critical media about Burmese issues.

“We can build networks and maybe help each other achieve some of our aims in activism,” she said.

At the welcome ceremony, both Cho and Wang were garlanded with traditional lei flowers and presented with AUT tee shirts.

Cho thanked Dr Cocker, PMC director Dr David Robie and the sponsoring Asia New Zealand Foundation for the “tireless efforts” in getting her to New Zealand.

Pictured: Top: Violet Cho (left) and Wang Nan at the welcome. Above: Cho, Wang and Dr Robie. Photo: Alan Koon.

China Daily
Irrawaddy
Asia New Zealand Foundation

China Daily online editor joins AUT on exchange

Staff reporter: Pacific Media Centre

A China Daily online editor arrived in Auckland, New Zealand, today on a semester-long exchange study internship with AUT University's School of Communication Studies.

Beijing-born Wang Nan, 28, a cultural affairs editor on China Daily.com's culture website also assists the chief editor.

"My job is to introduce China’s beautiful places which are worth a visit and to profile delicious Chinese food, people’s lives and many interesting things," she says.

"If you want to know more about common Chinese young people’s life, just ask me - don't hesitate!"

For five years, graduate journalists from AUT have worked on three-month internships on the China Daily's websites and several have gone on to full time jobs with Chinese media or news organisations elsewhere in Asia.

In return, AUT has hosted China Daily staff on exchange, mostly in the Business Faculty.

Wang is the first China Daily staff person to join the School of Communication Studies and she will be attached with the AUT Pacific Media Centre during her stay in New Zealand.

Her family name Wang means “king” in the Putonghua language and Nan is a variety of tree and represents good health.

She has worked with several AUT journalism graduates in Beijing and she found the most recent internee, Cameron Broadhurst - who also did an internship with the Jakarta Daily Post in 2007 - the most helpful.

"Cameron gave me much help for my trip to Auckland and he told me he was sure it would be a great adventure for me. I look forward to it."

While at AUT, Wang - who holds a BA degree in English language and literature from Beijing International Studies University - will be doing a series of design and media papers.

Her chief interests include painting and photography.

China Daily
China Daily culture
Pacific Media Centre
AUT international journalism internships

A breathtaking view from the PMC's guy in China

Hi all,

Here's a pic of the breath-taking Great Wall that quite literally does stretch further than the eye can see. Really amazing - thin and even quite low in some places, it once stretched over 5000km over the tops of the tallest hills. Some parts have been fixed, others not really.

Then come the Terracotta Warriors. For those of you that don't know, they were made by the king who first unified China over 2000 years ago. He got arrogant and wanted to continue ruling even after his death, so he had 170,000 people work on building this army of life-sized, individualised (right down to facial expressions and ranks, see the pictured general - you can tell rank by armour and headress) and battle ready (in formation, once upon a time armed with real weapons and wooden chariots, which disintegrated etc). There are over 6000 warriors in one pit but most are still buried (they were placed in tunnels just under ground level and found in 1974 by a farmer digging a well, poor guy sits in site shop signing books all day).

Once they were fully painted but within three days of being unearthed the paint faded, they have left most buried till they can work out technology to keep the paint.

Shortly after the king died suddenly during an inspection, one of his generals led a revolt and his men found and looted the Terracotta Warrior halls, stealing the weapons and destroying most of the warriors so most of the ones seen today have been fixed up. There are in fact three pits - one command centre, one fast response unit made up of calvary, chariots and archers, and one mostly comprising the military and chariots with the main army in battle formation.

Phenomenal!

Now some of the media stuff I'm doing if you are interested. Here's a link to see our multimedia news output:
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-08/29/content_6982573.htm

Also, follow this link for a column piece written about why I think the Chinese - and most internationals - support Obama:
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2008-08/30/content_6983958.htm

I hope you're all well,

Cheers

Dylan (in Beijing)