Caijing

"Caijing" (财经) is an independent, Beijing-based magazine devoted to information on companies in China. The publication's title means "Finance and Economics Magazine." "Caijing's" driving mission is to have an "independent standpoint, exclusive coverage and unique perspective."

History

"Caijing" (Finance Magazine) was started in June of 1998 by Hu Shuli, a former reporter and editor of the Chinese paper "Worker's Daily", as a monthend edition of "Securities Market Weekly" ; the magazine is a pioneer in its field in China. "Caijing" was established and is managed by the Stock Exchange Executive Council (SEEC) [http://www.seec-media.com.hk] (中国证券市场研究设计中心(联办)), and is published on the 5th and 20th of every month. SEEC also owns [http://www.zhoukan.com.cn "Securities Market Weekly"] (The Integrated Version and The Market Version), [http://www.caijingshibao.com "Business Post"] and "New Real Estate".

Features

tyle

"Caijing's" guiding principles are:
* Independent Standpoint
* Exclusive Coverage
* Unique Perspective

Its unique perspective and sharp writing have led to it receiving enthusiastic responses from financial industry experts and casual individual investors alike. "The Wall Street Journal" called "Caijing" "The Leading Finance Publication in China".

The articles "Financial Inside Story" and "Yinguangxia Trap" helped "Caijing" to make its name and earn its financial investigative reputation. The magazine's knack for exposing the darkside of the financial world has helped it to carve out a niche as a financial magazine. Although many magazines try to copy the style of "Caijing", these imitations only find brief, fleeting success. "Caijing" is the only magazine that has continued to strengthen its reputation solely through investigative reporting.

Financial Structure

"Caijing's" pay structure contributes greatly to its success. Most Chinese media, especially publications specializing in the business sector, are not funded well. Reporters and writers for the majority of publications receive kickbacks from businesses at conventions and conferences. These "gifts," handed simply in little unmarked envelopes, entreat the writers to be kind in their writeups of the companies.

Secondly, "Caijing's" primary funding adds to its success. Government affiliation of most Chinese publications translates into little freedom for writing articles that can be best-sellers - and profit-makers. "Caijing" has circumvented this cyclical problem by securing financial backing free from advertising and government influence. Backed by the SEEC, "Caijing" operates with great latitude compared to its competitors. Despite the SEEC's government backing, the institute is in reality comprised of a group of private investors. These free market-minded investors only benefit from the blunt honesty of "Caijing" and therefore don't act as censors. Independent funding has freed "Caijing" from pandering to special interests.

Content

The "Periodical China" has expectations of "Caijing" becoming a magazine focusing on economical and political issues, similar in vein to The Economist. So far the topics covered by "Caijing" are usually financial news, e.g. news about micro and macroeconomics, capital and money markets. However, some important social issues are reported and sometimes find themselves in the headlines of the magazine. These social issues have ranged from SARS to flooding to accidents in China.

One in-depth example would be coverage of SARS. [http://www.caijing.com.cn/sars/sars_caijing.htm] "Caijing" had published a 9-page report about SARS in February 2003, reports about Hong Kong and the mainland starting from April 2003, and a commentary calling for transparency on SARS in 20 April 2003 issue - the same day that the original Minister of Health and Beijing mayor were fired. "Caijing" then sent most of its reporters all over the mainland to cover SARS by this juncture.

The most famous investigative story, according to "Periodical China", was a story about the problems in investment funds [http://www.caijing.com.cn/mag/preview.aspx?ArtID=1913] , which was published in 2000. These funds then made their own statements criticizing the report. Hu Shuli was evened named as the "most dangerous woman" in the China securities market as a result. In a true "transparent" fashion, "Caijing" rebutted with a responding statement. [http://www.caijing.com.cn/mag/preview.aspx?ArtID=2191] [http://www.caijing.com.cn/mag/preview.aspx?ArtID=2073]

Apart from news reports, there are also commentaries from Hu Shuli (called "Shuli's Observation") and other famous journalists and economists, such as Jonathan Anderson and Wang Dingding.

"Caijing's" English language section, "Newsletter" [http://www.caijing.com.cn/english] , has been published to summarize the most important and informative stories and sidebars from each issue of the print version.

All the content of "Caijing" is available on its own website [http://www.caijing.com.cn] , where archives of the magazine are kept. However, some of the online articles are for subscribers only.

trengths and Weaknesses

"Periodical China" has suggested 3 key factors that have made "Caijing" successful. The first is investigative reports, the second is the unique perspective of commentaries, the third is "Caijing's" three guiding principles-independence, uniqueness and exclusiveness.

Other reasons for "Caijing's" success are, according to "Periodical China", the semi-official background of the investors, the news principles of Hu Shuli, her leadership and social networks, the separation of editorial staff and management, guaranteed funding, and focus on editorial integrity and planning.

At the same time, however, because "Caijing" focuses on investigating the fraud and deception that damage China’s stock markets, it is inevitable that "Caijing" could face pressure from the Chinese Central Government. Some foreign reporters, such as Dan Slater, have asked how long "Caijing" can survive [http://www.financeasia.com/Articles/247B8199-7DBB-11D6-81E00090277E174B.cfm] . For instance, after the editors of "Caijing" ignored official bans and printed an expose of the recent real estate/loan scandal involving Shanghai magnate Zhou Zhengyi and others, Chinese officials soon ordered the blocking of its distribution for the month of June [http://www.friedlnet.com/news/03062702/4/] . So exactly how much freedom exists in the current Chinese press market for a magazine with such liberal reporting remains questionable.

Also at issue is whether the magazine will be sued due to so-called "false reports." According to the academic paper "Media Defendants in the Chinese Courts" by Professor Zhiwu Chen, specializing in finance at the Yale School of Management, judges in China tend to put protection of people's reputation as a top priority. So facing any court case with accusations of false reporting, if "Caijing" could not prove that its entire article was true, then the judge would most likely treat the article as false and side with the plaintiff. "Caijing" has already lost one trial with "Shiji Xinyuan" (世纪星源), a listed company, following this judicial line of reasoning. A report in "Caijing" claimed the company manipulated its financial statements to hide financial weaknesses. "Shiji Xinyuan" then sued "Caijing" and won because a small part of the article was "false," though the majority was true.

Some claim another of "Caijing's" potential liabilities is how much it is influenced by the personal style of Hu Shuli. According to "Periodical China", "Caijing's" evolution has been closely tied to Hu, and if Hu leaves the magazine in the future, "Caijing's" future could be greatly affected.

Also under fire has been whether the investors of "Caijing" have adequate capital to support the magazine. SEEC operates several other magazines, and it has been questioned whether it can support its many projects.

Circulation

"Caijing" has grown into a glossy bi-weekly with a staff of more than 50. It has an estimated circulation of 220,000 copies per issue, according to the information given in a website [http://www.hml.com.hk/asia.html] . "Caijing" is available in the major cities of China and in some Hong Kong bookstores.

Characteristics of Readers

According to market research survey in April 2001 [http://caijing.homeway.com.cn/] , over 70% of "Caijing's" demographic are professionals that have a final say in the decisions made within their companies' operations. Most of the readers are male (82.4%), with ages ranging from 30 to 40. 65% of readers have received post-secondary education. Readership looks at "Caijing" "frequently" and 50% of readers have over 100,000 yuan in annual income.

EEC Media Group Limited

The group has become the sole advertising operator of "Caijing" since November 2002 and is listed on the [http://www.hkex.com.hk Hong Kong Stock Exchange] (Stock Code HK205).

cholarship (Fellowship)

Established in 1998, Caijing Fellowship is organized by [http://ccer.pku.edu.cn The China Center of Economic Research] at Peking University and is funded by "Caijing".The Fellowship provides funding for training in economic and management theory, as well as financial news reporting. Each year 10 journalists and editors from financial media in China can receive the fellowships.

Contact

*Address: 北京市朝外大街22号泛利大厦10层(10/F, 22 Chao Wai Da Jie, Beijing, China)
*Tel: [phone]
*Fax: [phone]
*E-mail: [e-mail]

External links

* [http://www.caijing.com.cn/ "Caijing" official website]
* [http://www.sinoinfotech.com/ SEEC Media Group Limited]
* [http://news.homeway.com.cn/detail.aspx?id=523942 Caijing Fellowship]
* [http://media.news.sohu.com/2004/02/05/22/news218932250.shtml The extract of "Periodical China"]