Commentator

I read an article in the paper about Huang Jianxiang, the Chinese commentator for China Central Television(CCTV). He was on the job for the live broadcast of the play-off between Italy and Australia. It was reported that he was very one-sided throughout the match. He was rootin for the Italians while putting down the Aussie team. This TV commentator had taken sides! How unprofessional!

When he was questioned by his colleagues he said that he was human and not a machine. He had feelings and as such he cannot be completely impartial! He went on to say that he really didn't like Australia and he didn't want them to win. If that was the case he should have resigned from his post and started his own broadcasting company and support any team he fancied. As long as he is working for someone else he has to follow the rules. As a TV commentator he must know that there are viewers who also support Australia.

He acted very irresponsibly. But what I am interested in is what did the station do about his unprofessional outburst? Was any action taken immediately. The match would have lasted more than one hour forty five minutes. He was heard shouting hysterically for the Italians during that time. Weren't the people in management aware of his antics?

In contrast, look at what happened to Andreas Wenzel, a stadium announcer in Berlin. He used the announcement of a substitution to tell the 72,000-strong crowd in Berlin's Olympiastadion that the German team needed their support. Although he was a veteran announcer for the German national team, he was promptly substituted at the microphone by the local organising committee. What was the comment by FIFA's director of communications, Markus Siegler? "This had no place in the balanced neutrality of an announcer. It's not acceptable".

I guess the CCTV management team don't have the same views regarding such incidences. In Asia anything goes as long as can make money!