MCLC: Xi's office chat

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Xi’s office chat
Source: China Real Time blog, WSJ (12/31/14)
Xi Sets Tradition With New Year’s Office Chat
Setting what appears to be a new tradition, Chinese President Xi Jinping for the second year in a row gave television viewers a fresh peek into his office for New Year’s.
In a nearly 10-minute speech broadcast at the top of the main China Central Television evening news on Wednesday, the president said reform and rule of law would be twin goals for the coming year. “In 2014, we pressed ahead with reform, cracked many hard nuts and introduced a slew of important reform measures, which were closely related to the interests of our citizens,” Mr. Xi said, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
The speech was notable mostly for its location: Mr. Xi’s office.
Wearing a burgundy tie and dark suit, Mr. Xi sat behind his large wooden desk and in front of a Chinese flag and a mural of the Great Wall. It appeared to be the latest effort by Mr. Xi to project an all-business image after a year where he has emphasized repeatedly the importance of forthright work styles among Chinese officials.
A year ago, Mr. Xi also sent a brief new year’s greeting from behind the desk–and in doing so set off a public sensation as Internet users commented on his office photos and seeming lack of a computer.
Despite Mr. Xi’s busy year, the desk appeared little disturbed, with its two red phones to his right along with a whitish one. Notebooks were stacked neatly within reach. But at least one photo on the bookshelves behind appeared new: over Mr. Xi’s left shoulder looked like an early shot of his father in the Mao-suit like army uniform of the day.
Speaking a steady timbre, Mr. Xi turned his head slightly to read each line. “We adapted to the new normal of economic growth; actively promoted economic and social development; and further improved the people’s lives,” he said.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Xi also delivered greetings in a speech to top party leaders where he told them to maintain solidarity and listen to the voice of the people.  That message doesn’t need much explanation: the party under Mr. Xi this year leveled corruption allegations at three top-level leaders, and the campaign appears popular.
Top leaders also attended a traditional opera for the new year “featuring martial heroes, righteous and incorrupt officials,” according to Xinhua. Coverage of Mr. Xi’s new-year activities took up nearly 30 minutes in the normally half-hour news roundup.
Shortly after the televised speech, Xinhua published a commentary that said Mr. Xi is leading China into a new era of “great rejuvenation” for 2015 and can count on enthusiasm to do it from the nation’s public, as well as foreigners like Mark Zuckerberg. The Facebook chief and co-founder recently instructed his employees to read Mr. Xi’s book, despite the service’s ban in China.
That all suggests Mr. Xi’s desk might be a little messy next year.
by denton.2 at osu.edu on January 3, 2015
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