One nation under CCTV

 

现在贴这张照片应该很应景吧。其实我早在几个月前就在公司旁边的一条小路上spot到这面墙了。第二天我特地拿了照相机去把它拍了下来，因为我觉得这简直就是献给全中国人民的。尽管实际上这是英国人自嘲他们拥有数量惊人全世界第一的CCTV———Closed-circuit Television闭路电视监控系统：全英国共有近420万台CCTV camera，平均每14人拥有1台。

 

元宵节CCTV新大楼着起来的那天，BBC驻北京记者James Reynolds也很应景地写了一篇有关燃放烟花爆竹的博，庆幸接连两个礼拜的隆隆爆竹声终于要消停了，结尾处还“好心”地提醒要注意劣质烟花爆竹和酒后放炮引起火灾。内容也并没什么大不了，当然口气还是像往常一样irritating。于是又照例激起了看他博客的中国人的反击。而我也对他博客中的BBC态度不满有日，正想着也要“声讨”一下的时候，我们的CCTV就不失时机地着了起来。这位敬业的记者马上又是更新报道，又是上视频，还翻译了央视的火灾声明，忙活半天，最后证明So it was fireworks that did it。大概，James Reynolds还应该真心地说一句，感谢CCTV!

 

不过，这个James可能只顾更新自己的博客了，忘记去看看国内新闻网站的反应。他要是知道起火的那个时候国内的网媒们正反其道而行之，在CCTV的名义下撤回火灾消息，那他这两天也许就不会无聊地在博客里对菲尔普斯向中国粉丝道歉的事情说三道四了。

 

倒是火灾过后，全国网民对央视“元宵大礼花”的“礼赞”大快人心———有人甚至用“多行不义必自毙”来形容主旋律的“凤凰涅磐”。正如全英国百多万的CCTV无法阻挡犯罪事件的发生，却成为社会公民隐私侵害的隐患；当一个应该对13亿人民负责的CCTV反倒成为高高在上的“主宰”时，应该是时候考虑一下如何将它们归位的问题了。我在想不知道这把大火会不会成为一个契机。但马上我就不得不悲观地承认，在烈火中重生的那一天，对于这一个1：1,300,000,000的CCTV似乎还很遥远。

 

面对隐藏在各个场所的CCTV，英国人大呼Britain is a ’surveillance society’.面对经常滚动若干小时“天下太平”的CCTV，中国人又该大呼什么呢？

 

 

阳光波尔图

 

 

 

 

 

上个周末，在葡萄牙, 波尔图。三天，碧空如洗，阳光肆意。其时，伦敦正经历又一次大幅降温。这百分百的阳光足以让我们忘却严冬的逼近。波尔图是一个奇异的城市。海港、美酒、古都、旧楼、世界文化遗产，这个有很多理由可以很热闹的地方却安静地站在那条美丽的Douro河边，看着河流优雅地流向大海，变作惊涛。单是这一点，就让我有足够的理由喜欢上她。水，从来都造就城市的灵性。

 

其实，某人就是冲着波尔图的美酒而去的。结果，这个传世的酒都居然很奇异地满大街找不到几个酒吧！好在只要是有酒的地方就有惊喜，哪怕只是一个街边的小咖啡馆。波尔图的葡萄酒香、甜、蜜，却又其实变化万千。

 

 

 波尔图有一座伟岸的钢铁大桥，连接着酿造美酒的彼岸和古老沧桑的此岸。最初走在上面的时候，它的高度让我胆战心惊。我们酒店的房间里挂着一副波尔图钢铁大桥建成前的城市速写——慵懒而随意。我却在猜想如果今天就拆去这座号称欧洲最大的拱形桥之一，这座城市是否还会被还原成当初的样貌——那些隐没在曲径古道里的情境，是不是应该从来都未曾轻易散落在历史的尘埃中。

 

 

 

 波尔图是一个有故事的城市。我游走在那被列为世界文化遗产的古城墙和旧住宅之间，努力想探寻那些被推倒旧屋后面的情结，却发现匆匆过客如我们，似乎也只能在炫目的阳光下眯起眼睛，沉默地感慨。

 

 

 

 

 

 

 我们在夕阳西下的时候离去。我忽然无法想象，这座安静的古城，有过怎样的风华正茂。

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

意大利记者也不例外。。。

难得来写字，本来不想谈工作，但今天碰到的这位老兄实在bizzare。忍不住想叨叨两句。权当一笑。

 

我一直以为中国的记者是被宠坏了的一群。记得自己当年在党报实习的时候，就切身享受过很多待遇。从了公关以后，更是亲自“款待”过无数“角儿”，可世界之大，今天遭遇这位意大利老兄，才知道道高一尺，魔高一丈。

 

话说这个周末Montreal有个大congress，该老兄应邀前往。从给他订机票的那一刻起，麻烦便接踵而至：

- 他明明住在罗马，却偏要从米兰起飞，还要求出发前一晚就抵达米兰并住上一宿，不知道是不是有个小蜜在米兰。

- 他明明16号就可以返意，却偏要在Montreal待到20号，还要求给他找好酒店买好单，不知道是不是还有个小蜜在加拿大。

- Montreal因为这个大会，从航班到酒店统统爆满，从米兰飞Montreal的business class更是少之又少。（对，他还要飞公务舱）好不容易我们全员出动给他找到中转纽约的business class航班一个，结果他横一个email，竖一个email，就是不从！理由是纽约转机他要过美国移民局的关卡，麻烦。好吧，联系航空公司，告知不用过移民关卡，还是不从，声明一定要飞中转欧洲某城的航班。于是再次全员出动，整整一天，从慕尼黑到巴黎到阿姆斯特丹，从法航荷航意航到英航，感谢上帝，最后终于找到可爱的伦敦希思罗居然还有business class空位一个！当然价格也很可爱，总计4300多个英国胖子！

 

老实说，从当年心心念念要做记者，到今天一心一意念公关经，我发现自己从来都很容易站在媒体的立场上为记者着想。当然，是从尽力为他们提供“有料”的材料，“有话”的采访机会，以写出有质量报道的角度而言的。至于“待遇”，我一向以为应该以“合理”为底线。而且事实证明，公务舱和超五星酒店换不来深度报道；有新闻的话，不请都会来。问题是，何谓合理，哪里是底线，却是各有各的说法。原以为我们宠坏了中国的记者们，原来意大利记者也不例外。虽然不可否认的是，大部分欧洲记者还是比较专业的，至少，“明知不可为而不为”——如果不能发稿，公务舱和超五星也不去！

 

这个意大利老兄的故事还没完。最精彩的是，离出票不到12小时，就在大家几乎额手相庆终于可以送这个祖宗去蒙特利尔并一睹其尊容的时候，人家轻描淡写来了一个email，“家中告急，15日之内无法离开意大利！”还连个sorry都没有！！Holly s***！昨天给你满世界找公务舱的时候你干嘛去了！！唉，算大伙儿倒霉，退票吧。连意大利那边的agency都在电话里叹着气说，我做公关20年，这号大爷还是头一回碰上！他也不是什么top tier的媒体呀！

 

也许，他不去蒙特利尔却正是a blessing in disguise！要不然谁知道他会不会在开会间隙再要求抽空给他换个带spa的房间呢？ 

Let the Game begin

Less than 5 hours to go before Beijing lights up the Olympic flame at the opening ceremony – I can imagine the fever and atmosphere in my country now even though I am again sitting in elsewhere "enjoying" the 7-hour time difference. This is not the hardest – because there are things much less enjoyable than the time difference.

 

Londoners, living in the city that is going to take over the five-ring flag in two weeks’ time continue to see a series of "negative" to "neutral" reports about Beijing and the Games in media. Pollution, algae, smog, evicted residents, terror attack – all the terms that don’t seem to ought to be logically connected with the Games – oh, human rights, freedom, openness and protest and free Tibet have grabbed the headlines in much higher frequencies near the opening of the Games. I knew this would not have been covered in any Chinese media but the two Britons, who unfurled a Free Tibet banner right outside the Olympics stadium in Beijing and were arrested have been praised as "hero" by the media here, hang on, with one to be a heroine. Who the hell are to blame?

 

Yesterday morning everyone in H&K received an email from H&K North Asia announcing that the Chairman & CEO of H&K had been invited by BOCOG to join the final leg of the torch rally in Beijing and carry the Olympics torch in recognition of the help and support that the company has been provided as the official communications agency of the International Olympics Committee. – I though couldn’t help wondering how much work would have needed to be done had H&K or any PR firms in the world ever dared to claim it could virtually help Beijing to change the West’s perception through sort of International Media Campaign? Unfortunately the complete free and open press is still nowhere to be seen anywhere in this world. Otherwise, this agency could definitely make a real fortune!

 

Well, off the "patriotic" topic for a while, personally, I had one hell of a week last week so that I did not have any time to worry about who should sing at the thought-to-be-the-most-spectacular opening ceremony in the history. I was forced to move house the second time in the space of 5 weeks. I can take it as part of the difficult experience of living abroad but it is truly exhausting. One thing can be assured is that being kind to nasty people literally means merciless to yourself.

 

Back to Olympics, BBC reporters have been touring around China in the past week to investigate whether or not the Olympics has changed the human rights situation in the country. Some of them speak fluent Mandarin and know China, some of them don’t. But none of them seem to be happy with the complaint they received during their interviews with the locals. Some of them even don’t seem to appreciate the efforts that China has been made to ensure a safe and a smooth Game. ‘China is extremely nervous’ – That is their conclusion. One presenter reminded the audience after one episode about the disappointment in China’s progress on human rights that 4 years later it will be Britons’ turn to welcome journalists from all over the world to criticize their dirty capital.

 

Perhaps hosting an Olympics is far less than enough. The greater game is still yet to start.

 

Good luck Beijing!! Good luck my country!!!

最近

 

我好像很久没有写字了。说“最近”实在是很惭愧，因为距离上次来这里已经快5个月了，根本就很不近。日子仍然从指尖飞快地滑过，时而快乐，时而忧伤，时而充满希望，时而又好像伦敦迟到的春天，永远都看不到明晃晃的阳光。其实我一直都在看一直都在想，只是想到深处，翻来覆去，却无从落笔。

 

最近最大的变化就是终于又回到了PR。一切仿佛重新回到8年前，不同的是这一次我知道自己在干什么。那一天在Intel的新闻稿里看到Dr Craig Barrett的照片，他，老当益壮，我，恍若隔世。当年周旋于今天上市会明天周年庆，执迷于“灯光亮起来，音乐响起来”的那一刻，内心却从未停止过疑惑。到今天才真正明白这根本就是西人的游戏。在一个红头文件仍然能决定次日头条的环境里，在一个非政府组织还未有真正话语权的市场上，谁又需要说客？其实我们那时搭台，又有多少是为“国”字头唱戏，上演的终究还是人家的多幕剧，却，不可否认，打出过最漂亮的擦边球。

 

上个礼拜天伦敦莫名4月飞雪。我在清晨看到大雪蒙头又睡，错过了一场意料之外的“街演”。星期一一大早在BBC Breakfast里看到那个女主播一脸无辜坐在直播间讲述火炬险些被抢的经历，我的内心却翻滚数遍，一时茫然。我从来就是愤青一枚，可我从来也没有extremely patriotic，所以我才尴尬。面对这样的一场“斗争”，我想我们不需要更多热血的口号和无谓的抵制——我们从来就不缺这个；我们缺的是更多冷静、思考、对策、解决，西人也是借着我们祖先发明的汉字才把“危机”诠释成“危险”和“机遇”的。

 

伦敦的春天迟迟未到，阴晴不定，还偶尔雨雪交加，让我又有理由把万千心绪归结于老天作怪。小爱说我们都是有信仰的人，除非我们把自己说服，因为我们从来都尊重自己的内心。我知道她是对的。2月份的时候去比利时会Grace，和她在天寒地冻的荷兰小城埃因霍温偶遇复活节前的狂欢，一路都是从各地赶来的化了装的人们。看那些毫无顾忌穿得乱七八糟一路张牙舞爪放肆大喊纵情高歌开怀畅饮的“怪人”，再次心生感慨，我们活得是不是太累了。临近夜深，我们在车站被一个打扮成无知学童，背后背着一个小到不成比例的书包的青年逗得笑弯了腰，终于决定加入人群，纵然我们的衣着正常的可笑。回来以后，两人常常共勉，要像那个“小书包”一样，毫无顾忌地快乐。

 

那一天心血来潮在youtube上拼命找老歌，找到黄舒骏的《改变1995》，再于是又像从前一样一遍一遍地听。我忽然就想起了很多的从前，人和事。我知道很多时候我缺乏耐性，纵然心如明镜，却又不免在等待改变的煎熬中心浮气躁。也许，是我还不够坚定。

 

其实，花木无言却报春。路边那些粉色的花朵们早已探头，露出春天的笑脸。原来，春天早就来了。那好吧，我也要在心里，春暖花开起来。

Days of our Lives

All of a sudden, I am turning 30. Time goes way too fast before I start to realize. This turning-30 thing comes along just like the winter in England, which always falls overnight.

 

The last ten years have seen tremendous changes of me and my life. More precisely, I spent ten years to get to know who I am and what I really want. That is not easy though. Looking back on those old days, I can’t help wondering how different my life would have been had I pursured one of the many options I had ever had…

 

what if I had chosen English Literature as my major in the university;

what if I had worked in a local Shanghai media as a journalist since graduation;

what if I had held my original desire, Journalism School of Columbia University, and took the GRE test and made all the way to America;

what if I had moved to Beijing in 2003;

what if I had given up my intention of living abroad and had continued to work hard and play harder in Shanghai;

what if i had finally made the move to Beijing in 2004;

what if I had accepted that job offer in Singapore at the end of that insanely busy year;

what if I had not chosen Newcastle as my first destination in England;

what if …

 

The interesting part of imaging such things is that every option could turn to many other possibilities and these are just a few big steps that I think could possibly lead me to a completely dissimilar lifestyle. Maybe I actually have never pushed myself too hard due to my nature of being laid-back, although I always have certain things that I would not want to give up easily. However, I’d never intended to think whether any of the decisions I’ve made could be wrong or not. Because you just never know!

 

So I’ll offcially not be 20something any more in…a few hours. It is not really a scary business turning 30, to be honest. The big deal is to know what kind of life I want and to try to live life to the fullest, I suppose. I have been trying to do that all the time by all means, although I am still going through probably the most difficult period at the moment in my life. I have to be strong and be positive! But I am happy that I can see more clearly through myself now than ever before!   

 

At heart, I am ALWAYS 25!      

  

Le Petit Prince

On Wednesday night, I ended up reading "The Little Prince" again other than searching for a job. Bizarrely enough, I came across the e-book on the Internet where I had typed in key words like "PR and Marketing Communications". God knows how. And I not only found the English version but also saved a copy of French original – "Le Petit Prince", which I plan to read once I have more knowledge of French. I wish it wouldn’t take too long to see that day coming.

 

This is the third time that I read this book which is said to be the second most-frequently read book in the world, next to Bible. 20 years ago, when I was only 9, I randomly picked it in a book store that my parents often took me to in a Sunday afternoon. By the title, I thought it was just another fairy tale which I fancied at that time, like Andersen’s. But it disappointed me then. Because it is not a children’s book, a simple Prince-and-Princess-live-happily-ever-after story; it is about life and love, and a child telling the grow-ups how to perceive the world in a way they might have already forgotten, which perhaps was too much for a 9-year-old. I’m not sure about the others, but to me, it is only after I had seen, heard of and personally experienced many ups and downs in life did I truly understand the nature of this book. "Here is my secret. It is very simple: it is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye." And when it came to the chapters about the rose and that little fox, this time it almost made me tearful – yes, "We didn’t know much about love when we were young." I’m happy that I haven’t yet lost the ability to dream.

 

However, there is always a gap between dream and reality. Sometimes it could be as narrow as a few minutes, like the last few minutes in last night’s rugby world cup semi-final when England unbelievably turned the situation and beat France. Sometimes it could also be as practical as something like…money. At the moment, to me, unfortunately, it is the latter. So lately I have been busy looking for a proper job here. I thought it was frustrating when I had to wait for a piece of paper from Home Office, while I didn’t think it would be even more frustrating when I started sending out my CV all around. At times I just can’t help wondering how much easier things would have been if I were in Shanghai…But I know this is part of the challenges that I’ve chosen to take and I’ve got to take it! In Friends, Chandler once suggested Rachel quitting her crap job first to get the "fear" of being unemployed so that she would try harder to find a proper one. Hmmm, maybe I should do the same.

 

Well I think I have probably gone too far. I should go back to try those research tricks that a friend shared with me yesterday afternoon. Oh before I forget, Le Petit Prince has actually been adapted to a French-language musical and I was surprised to read it was revived at Shanghai Oriental Art Centre in JULY 2007! What a miss! I hope it would be running in Paris again. And that could be another one of my many motivators!