Internet Helps Liberate Music in China

Morning Edition, June 25, 2008 - When America was rocking to the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix, the airwaves in China were dominated by songs with lyrics from Chairman Mao's Little Red Book.

It's more open today, but the Communist government still bans anything that mentions sex or violence, or that has "low class humor" — which bans an awful lot of American music. So the music most likely to come pouring out of the radio in China is syrupy ballads usually produced in Hong Kong or Taiwan.

But Chinese musicians and fans are finding a whole new universe of sound on the Internet. And it's helping to create and nourish a new generation of independent artists in China.

Learn more and listen at NPR.org

Discover Chinese Indie Music Here

Frontline Documentaries about China

Jesus in China ,Tuesday, June 24, 2008, 8 p.m. on KCPT
A wave of Christianity is sweeping across China and the country's Communist Party leadership is racing to control it. FRONTLINE/World travels from rural villages to urban centers to go deep inside this underground movement. http://www.pbs.org/frontlineworld/stories/china_705/

Other Frontline Documentaries on China

I really enjoyed the documentary "Young and Restless in China" that aired last week on our local public tv stations. You can watch the entire program and explore much more related material at the Frontline website: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/youngchina/

Frontline also produced another much more indepth documentary in 2001 called "China in the Red" . It is also available online and explores topics like "Facing the State Sector's Crisis", "Scrambling to Survive", "Fear and Optimism in the Countryside", "The New Generation", "Corruption Crisis" and more. You can view it and learn more here: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/red/

Not familiar with Frontline?
Since 1983, FRONTLINE has served as American public television's flagship public affairs series. Hailed upon its debut on PBS as "the last best hope for broadcast documentaries," FRONTLINE's stature over 25 seasons is reaffirmed each week through incisive documentaries covering the scope and complexity of the human experience. Visit their website here: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/

As far as I am concerned, it's the only reason to watch TV.

Sports, Culture and Politics at the Beijing Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics will take place from August 8-24 in Beijing, China, amid concerns about environmental issues and human rights violations. Join the IRC in a discussion about what happens when sports, culture, and politics intersect for the largest international sports competition.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008
7:00 p.m.
Kauffman Foundation
4801 Rockhill Road, KCMO

Mike Fannin, Editor of the Kansas City Star and former head of the the Sports and Features Departments, has recently completed a term as President of the Associated Press Sports Editors. He has also visited China in 2007 to work with Chinese sports journalists about covering the Olympics. Dr. John Kennedy, Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Kansas, has an ongoing relationship with Northwest University in Xian, China, and makes frequent research trips to that region. He will return from his most recent trip one week before the IRC program.

$10 members/$15 non-members

Learn more at The International Relations Council Website

http://www.irckc.org/

LIVE from Shanghai, from WBUR in Boston

Broadcasting live from Shanghai, WBUR's On Point program, dove into the ideas, economics, people, culture, and politics that are driving China today. They talked with movers and shakers, party bosses and those who challenge them, with artists and activists, business moguls and visionaries — all describing what China is today and imagining what China will become, its life as a nation and its looming impact on the world.

Visit their website where you can listen to the program's audio, view slideshows, listen to some Shanghai music and explore their invaluable resources section for a multitude of other information about China.

http://www.onpointradio.org/china/index.php/about-the-china-series/

Don't you just love public radio?