While I’m sure everyone feels pretty up to date on things concerning the Sichuan earthquake you might want to check out Shanghailist, which is being updated constantly with all kinds of photos and news items you won’t find most places. But I also found this very interesting blog called Zhongnanhai, written by one or two guys that actually work for the state run media, criticizing CCTV’s initial coverage of the earthquake.

The world’s media has focused on the disaster area in Sichuan province. The Chinese public is desperate for news about the devastation and the story has even eclipsed the Myanmar disaster to become the lead item on most international newscasts, including CCTV International. Well, sort of. Credible news organizations instinctively lead with the latest video from the disaster areas. Basic details like rising casualty figures, the latest status on rescue efforts and the scope of damage are the first things presented in most newscasts; not so at CCTV International. While the subject is of course, the earthquake, the lead story on Tuesday night was, well, not really a lead story at all. Instead, the state-run broadcaster chose as its lead item a minute-long copy story (that means no video) about a phone conversation between President Hu Jintao (yes, he leads the news again) and US President George W. Bush. Bush was calling to send his condolences to the earthquake victims and their families on behalf of the American people as well as to “provide all possible assistance to the disaster areas.”

Weird. Try to imagine your local television channel reporting on a major natural disaster in this way. It gets more surreal, to the point where the government mouthpiece (CCTV) is — still in the lead story – reporting on Hu Jintao’s condolence call with George Bush, which Hu apparently used as an opportunity to reiterate China’s position on Tibet.

Fair enough, but this is not, I repeat NOT, a lead story, especially when thousands are dead more are hurt or missing. But then, four sentences in to this uninspired item, the substance - and the focus of this story- take a bizarre turn. During this conversation, viewers are told Hu Jintao decided to bring up the “upcoming fourth China-US strategic dialogue”. Awkward. That was followed by the usual blathering about China willing to “contribute to the development of bilateral ties.” Then it gets worse. As tens of thousands of rescue workers scramble to find survivors in the disaster areas, and a nation waits for the latest details on the catastrophe, viewers are told that during the conversation with the US President, “Hu Jintao also reiterated China’s stance on the Tibet issue”, and that he hoped the US will take a fair stance and “address the issue properly”. I would have given real money to see the bewildered look on Bush’s face in the Oval office when the translation came down the phone line on that one.

Indeed. Read the rest of this great post here.

Another good read is Seismic Shift: State TV on Speed, written by Jonathan Ansfield for the Newsweek blog. The post is about the pressure on CCTV to keep up with the other media organizations and blogs, arguing that the government’s handling of media during the earthquake crisis has been clean (sic transparent), possibly due in part to the upcoming Olympics.