Seeing

"Seeing" is an autobiographical work by renowned journalist and host Chai Jing, recounting her ten-year journey at CCTV. It serves as both a personal confession of her growth and, to some extent, a memorandum of the decade-long transformation of Chinese society.

Ten years ago, she was chosen to be a news anchor for national television, but her lack of experience thwarted her. After becoming a field reporter during the SARS epidemic, the raw, tangible experience of real life gradually freed her from the constraints of both the outside world and the self, leading to a broader and deeper understanding of life and human nature. Over the past decade, Chai Jing has been at the scene of nearly every major event, from SARS to the Wenchuan earthquake, covering the Two Sessions, and the Beijing Olympics. She has also produced numerous investigative pieces, including the South China tiger photos and land acquisitions.

In this book, she captures the moving details lost in the grand narrative, leaving a personal note on the times. As always, Chai Jing sees and records individuals in the news who have left a profound impression on her. Each person is deeply embedded in the world, and no one can be a mere spectator. What others experience, I must experience. The people and events recorded in this book are their lives, and also yours and mine.

For this book, I didn't deliberately select landmark events, nor did I aspire to depict history. From the vast sea of news reports, I chose only those individuals who left a powerful impression on me, people I happened to encounter through my work. They flowed, overflowing from the rocky embankment deep within me, repeatedly washing away rigid prejudices and patterns, causing them to tremble and crumble. This oscillation is dangerous, but the very nature of thought is restlessness.

I have tried to write as honestly as possible about the facts and causes and effects of this constant process of making mistakes, constantly overturning, constantly questioning, and constantly rebuilding. A country is made up of people, and a person is made up of countless others. How you want to report on a country is how you should report on yourself.

——Chai Jing

2013-01-01

廣西師範大學出版社

424

9787549529322