【雅思课外精读】长沙为何成为中国娱乐文化的圣地？

　　【雅思课外精读】长沙为何成为中国娱乐文化的圣地？*注：本文摘自8月8日《经济学人》

　　Entertainment娱乐

　　Heady Hunan火热湖南

　　How Hunan province has become a font of popular culture湖南如何成为流行文化前沿

　　1. Among this summer’s television hits in China has been “Sisters Who Make Waves”. The show involves 30 female celebrities over the age of 30 competing for a spot in a five-member band. Viewers watch them train, perform and live together. Five hundred women, picked at random, get to vote for their favourite. Within three days of its airing in June, over 300m had watched the first episode on Mango TV , a streaming app owned by the state television network of Hunan, a central province. Social-media sites brim with praise from young feminists for these somewhat older role models: at last, a break from the devoted mothers and dewy-faced ingénuesbeloved of official broadcasters.

　　今年夏天，《乘风破浪的姐姐》是中国热播的综艺之一。在节目中，30名年龄在30+的女明星争夺5人成团位。观众能够看到他们训练，表演和生活的片段。500名随机挑选的女性为她们喜欢的女明星投票。该节目6月在湖南电视台旗下的流媒体应用芒果TV 上线，第一期上线三天内就有超过3亿的播放量。社交媒体上到处都是年轻的女权主义者对这些女明星的赞扬：她们终于不再是官方媒体宣扬的那种慈爱的母亲和容易感动的天真女人形象了。

　　2. Making waves is what Hunan Broadcasting System (HBS) does best. It is the most-watched   television network after China Central Television CCTV ), the state broadcaster—and occasionally surpasses its ratings. That is striking for an outfit run by the government of a province that is better known as China’s largest producer of rice and the birthplace of Mao Zedong— “red tourism” centred on Mao’s formative haunts draws devotees of the chairman from around the country.

　　湖南卫视最擅长的就是制造轰动。它是中国收视率排名第二的电视台，仅次于中国中央电视台（CCTV ），某些时候，湖南卫视的收视甚至超过了CCTV 。湖南省是中国最大的大米生产地，也是毛泽东的故乡，湖南也因此以“红色旅游”吸引了全国各地的人来此表达他们对这位伟人的崇拜，因此，由湖南省政府运营的湖南卫视取得这样的成绩是很不同寻常的。

　　3. But Changsha, the provincial capital, has become a font of China’s popular culture. It is home to over 12,000 companies involved in creating it. They employ one in eight of the city’s workers. By one official calculation, no other sector contributes more to Changsha’s wealth.  In 2017 (the most recent year for which figures are available) creative and cultural industries generated 9% of the city’s GDP—a proportion twice as high as their contribution to national output. At their heart in Hunan is a broadcaster with a knack for cranking out programmes that are watched throughout China. In 2018 HBS’s affiliates produced six of China’s best-liked costume dramas and eight of its most popular songs.

　　湖南省会长沙已经成为了中国流行文化的源头。长沙文化产业有超过12000家公司，它们一起创造了这样的奇迹，这些公司雇佣了长沙八分之一的劳动力。根据一项官方统计，长沙文化产业对长沙财富的贡献是最大的。2017年 (可获得数据的最近一年)，创意和文化产业创造了该市GDP的9%，是其对国民产出贡献的两倍。湖南很擅长制作出受全国观众喜爱的节目。2018年，湖南卫视旗下的各家公司制作了6部中国最受欢迎的古装剧和8首最受欢迎的歌曲。

　　4. Changsha’s standing has turned its biennial “Golden Eagle” awards into one of China’s three most prestigious prize-giving ceremonies for TV stars. By GDP per person, Hunan ranks 16th among China’s 31 provincial-level regions. But its 67m people are the country’s fifth-biggest spenders on culture, education and entertainment. Hunan’s journey to national pop-culture prominence began in the 1990s when the provincial broadcasting authorities created a satellite TV station with license to try something new. It produced lively news reports, a celebrity-led variety show called “Happy Camp” and even a matchmaking programme. By 2000 hotels in Beijing were luring guests with placards boasting, “We have Hunan Satellite TV”, the New York Times observed at the time.

　　长沙的突出地位使其两年一度的“金鹰奖”成为中国三大重量级电视颁奖之一。按人GDP计算，湖南在中国31个省级地区中排名第16位。湖南有6700万人，但在文化、教育和娱乐消费方面，湖南排名第五。上世纪90年代，湖南开始了其走向全国流行文化前沿的旅程。当时，省级广播部门创办了一家卫星电视台，试图尝试一些新的东西，该电视台制作了一些生动的现场报道，播出了由名人主导的综艺节目《快乐大本营》，甚至还播出了一些相亲节目。据《纽约时报》报道，2008年，北京的酒店甚至开始用“我们酒店有湖南卫视频道”这样的标语来吸引顾客。

　　5. Much of that early success was the work of a Hunanese bureaucrat, Wei Wenbin. When he took over as director of the Hunan Radio and Television Department, Mr Wei read up about America’s entertainment industry. On land once used by a state-run rose farm, he built a vast park for television and film production and moved the new satellite TV  station there. The area, Malanshan, has since grown into a cultural powerhouse, drawing media giants such as iQiyi and Tencent. In 2017 eight of the ten most-streamed variety shows on the Chinese internet were hatched there.

　　湖南卫视早期的成功很大程度上是魏文彬的功劳。在担任湖南广播电视部部长时，魏文彬深入了解了美国的娱乐产业。他在一片国有玫瑰农场上建起了一个巨大的电视和电影制作园区，并将新的电视台搬去了那里。如今，马栏山已经成了一个文化中心，吸引了爱奇艺和腾讯等媒体巨头。2017年，中国互联网上收视率最高的10档综艺节目中有8档都是在马栏山完成的。

　　6. Hunan TV was the first network in China to try broadcasting for profit. That led it to focus on entertainment, a priority which helped it avoid political mistakes, as Wu Changchang of East China Normal University has noted. According to Mr Wu, Hunan TV  struck a delicate balance between winning the love of viewers and approval from the National Radio and Television Administration（NRTA）, which is a “prerequisite” of commercial success in China.

　　湖南卫视是中国第一家尝试通过广播盈利的电视网络。华东师范大学的吴畅畅指出，这使得湖南卫视专注于娱乐，有助于其避免一些政治上的失误。吴畅畅表示，湖南卫视在赢得观众喜爱和获得广电总局喜爱之间找到了微妙的平衡，而获得广电总局认可是湖南卫视获得商业成功的先决条件。

　　7. The government has occasionally winced. In 2011 it took “Happy Girls”, a fantastically popular singing contest, off air. The official explanation was that the show was too racy for its prime-time slot, but many wondered whether its huge excitable fan base worried the NRTA. In 2004 a forerunner of the show, “Super Girls”, had let spectators vote for contestants by text message—a first in China. After a few years Hunan TV limited voting mainly to a studio audience.

　　政府有时候也会害怕。2011年，一直广受欢迎的歌唱比赛“快乐女声”停播。官方解释是，这个节目太过活泼，不适合在黄金时段播出。但是，很多人怀疑，其实是该节目庞大而又易被煽动的粉丝群体引起了广电总局的担忧。2004年，“快乐女声”的前身“超级女声”让观众通过短信为选手投票，这在中国尚属首次。几年后，湖南卫视的投票仅面向500名现场观众了。

　　8. Yet Hunan’s stations still have “space to explore new things”, in the view of a manager at Mango TV. The government wants to get “closer to its audience”, he says, in particular to the young who spend hours glued to their smartphones. Internet broadcasters such as Mango TV, with 18m subscribers, help it to do so.

　　然而，在芒果的一位管理人员看来，湖南卫视仍有很大“探索新事物的空间。”他表示，政府想要“联系群众，”尤其是那些每天大部分时间都在盯着手机屏幕的年轻人。拥有1800万用户的芒果TV等互联网广播公司能够帮助政府实现这一点。

　　9. Hunan TV ’s ability to experiment matters for the development of Chinese broadcasting. a former presenter at the station says the province is a training ground for much of the country’s television talent. Industry insiders call Changsha the “West Point” of China’s cultural-entertainment industry, a reference to the American army’s elite academy.

　　湖南卫视的实验能力对中国广播事业的发展至关重要。前湖南主持人李淑婉表示，湖南是中国许多电视人才的训练场。业内人士称长沙为中国文化娱乐业的“西点军校”。

　　10. It is just as competitive. In 2013 Ms Li was one of only two students from Hunan University who were admitted to Hunan TV ’s graduate programme. This year some 30,000 people applied for 100 spots on Mango TV ’s trainee scheme. Mango TV  encourages young recruits to speak up and suggest fresh ideas. They can receive funding to implement their proposals.

　　湖南的竞争也很激烈。2013年，湖南大学仅有两名毕业生被录取进入湖南电视台的毕业生项目，李淑婉就是其中之一。今年，芒果TV有100个培训生名额，约有3万人提交了申请。芒果TV鼓励新员工大胆发生，提出新想法，他们会为这些新想法的落地实施提供资金支持。

　　11. Yang Tianhao, a co-founder of , which manages 600 social-media influencers from itsoffices in China (including Changsha) and Los Angeles, says that young people in Hunan’s capital are risk-takers, with parents who are more willing to let their children try their luck in a fickle industry than counterparts in richer Chinese cities. Well before Hunan’s  “Sisters” filled smartphone screens, a Hunanese woman was making them:  Zhou Qunfei, the founder of Lens Technology. Born to a poor, rural family, she was named the world’s richest self-made woman in 2018.

　　二咖传媒负责管理600个社交媒体红人，在中国和洛杉矶都有分部，其创始人之一杨天浩表示，比起中国其他城市来说，长沙的年轻人勇于挑战，他们的父母也更愿意让他们的孩子在这个碰运气的行业里面去闯一闯。早在湖南的《乘风破浪的姐姐》风靡之前，一个湖南女性就已经在创造这样的奇迹了，她就是蓝思科技的创始人周群飞。她出生在一个贫穷的农村家庭，2018年被评为世界上最富有的白手起家女首富。

　　12. People in China like to point to character traits which they believe are shared by natives of a particular province. The executive at Mango TV detects “a cultural gene to break the rules” among Hunanese. For evidence, he points to Mao and Liu Shaoqi, who was born in Changsha and served as Mao’s prime minister. Hunan’s broadcasters certainly have an interest in cultivating the stereotype: an edgy feel is crucial to the success of their brand.

　　在中国人看来，某一个省份的人有一些共有的特征。芒果TV的高管发现湖南人有一种“打破规则的文化基因。”为了证明这一点，他还提到了毛泽东和刘少奇。刘少奇也出生在长沙，曾担任毛泽东的总理。湖南电视台肯定会打造这样一种印象：前卫感对湖南卫视的成功至关重要。

　　精读解析

　　篇章结构P1—P2: 由《乘风破浪的姐姐》引入，湖南卫视擅长制造轰动，取得巨大成功。P3—P4：湖南成为中国流行文化的前沿：金鹰奖；各种节目；P5—P9：湖南成功的历史：魏文彬的改革；湖南在广电总局和观众喜爱之间努力寻找平衡；湖南的成功对中国电视行业发展至关重要：湖南是中国娱乐业 的“西点“。P10—P11：湖南竞争激烈，鼓励挑战；P12：湖南的文化基因：敢于打破规则。

　　重点单词compete for角逐，竞争；为…比赛【例句】Two candidates competed for the vacancy.两个应征者竞争这一空缺。

　　at random随便地；任意地；胡乱地【例句】I admire those who are in love on campus and at the same time I felicitate myself on not choosing at random.我羡慕那些拥有校园爱情的同学，也为我自己的宁缺勿滥喝彩。

　　episode /'ep ɪ s əʊ d/ n. 插曲；插话；一段情节；有趣的事件【例句】This episode may serve as a paradigm.这一插曲可以充作典型例子。

　　brim with洋溢着；充满着【例句】Her eyes were brimming with tears.她已经热泪盈眶了。

　　dewy-faced 泪流满面的

　　ingénue / ˌ æ n ʒ ei'nju:/ n. 天真无邪的少女【例句】Perhaps an ingénue, such as a child, may appreciate the gestalt of a great work of art.或许只有纯真的人，就像儿童，能一下就感受到一件伟大的艺术品的优美。

　　most-watched adj. 收视率最高的【例句】What`s now the most watched sports event on the planet, the World Cup, was first held in 1930.现在世界上最受关注的体育赛事是世界杯，第一次举办是在1930年。

　　surpass /sə'pɑːs/ vt. 胜过，优于；超越；非…所能办到或理解【例句】This realization of our dreams surpassed even our wildest expectations.我们梦想的实现甚至超越了我们最大胆的估计。

　　outfit /'aʊtfɪt/ n. 全套装备, 全套工具；一套服装；集体; 组织【例句】Tom was the brains of the outfit.汤姆是这帮人的军师。

　　formative /'fɔːmətɪv/ adj. (影响)形成〔构成, 发展〕的【例句】Parents have the greatest formative effect on their children’s behaviour.父母对孩子的行为有最深远的影响。

　　haunt /hɔːnt/ vt. 经常出没于；缠绕, 萦绕n. 某人常去的地方【例句】The area was a haunt of criminals.这个地区是罪犯经常出没的地方。

　　devotee /ˌdevə(ʊ)'tiː/ n. 爱好者；信徒【例句】Its greatest devotees praise it even more extravagantly.极度热爱这本书的人对它的赞美更是不遗余力。

　　calculation /kælkjʊ'leɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 计算,计算(的结果)；推断;预测,估计；盘算,深思熟虑,慎重的计划；自私的打算；算计【例句】All his calculations and experiments are carefully dominated.他的一切计算和实验都受到严格控制。

　　available / ə 've ɪ l ə b( ə )l/ adj. 可用的或可得到的；可会见的, 可与之交谈的【短语】available for 可用于…的；对…有效的；能参加…的available on 仅在…有效（付款）available from 可向…购买available with 向（指定银行）押汇available resources 可利用的资源【例句】It is both cheap and abundantly available.它不仅便宜而且产量丰富。

　　knack /næk/ n. 诀窍；本领；熟练技术；巧妙手法【例句】There is a knack in tying ropes together.把绳子绑在一起有点技巧。

　　crank out制成；粗制滥造【例句】Indian factories cranked out 30% fewer air conditioners and 15% fewer colour televisions, official data show.印度生产的空调数量下降了30%，彩电数量下降了15%。

　　affiliate/ ə 'f ɪ l ɪ e ɪ t/ vt. 使隶属于, 接纳…为成员n. 附属企业【短语】affiliate marketing 联盟营销；从属营销affiliate program 联盟计划；伙伴计划affiliate with v. 交往affiliate company 联营公司【例句】This hospital is affiliated with that university.这个医院是那所大学的附属医院。

　　biennial /baɪ'enɪəl/ adj. 两年一次的n. 二年生植物【例句】The workers were strongly against the biennial election.工人们强烈反对两年一次的选举。

　　prestigious /pre'stɪdʒəs/ adj. 受尊敬的, 有声望的, 有威信的【例句】Britain's most prestigious prize for contemporary art.英国对当代艺术的最高奖励。

　　prize-giving ceremony颁奖典礼【例句】Doshi will be given the $100,000 prize in May at a ceremony in Toronto, Canada.多西将于5月在加拿大多伦多举行的颁奖典礼上获得10万美元的奖金。

　　prominence /'pr ɒ m ɪ n ə ns/ n. 声望, 杰出；突出;重要;要事【例句】Bridget Rileycame to prominence as an artist in the 1960s.布里奇特•赖利在20世纪60年代成为卓越的艺术家。

　　satellite /'sætəlaɪt/ n. 卫星；人造卫星；卫星国, 附庸国, 卫星都市【例句】The program is being relayed by satellite.节目正在通过卫星转播。

　　variety show杂耍表演；综艺节目【例句】Soupy's Soda Shop was later followed by a variety show called Club Nothing.在《苏坡的苏打商店》之后，他又做了一档名为《无俱乐部》的综艺节目。

　　placard /'plækɑ ː d/ n. 招贴,布告,广告vt. 张贴布告于,在…上贴广告【例句】The circus placarded the city with advertisements.马戏团满城张贴广告。

　　bureaucrat /'bjʊərəkræt/ n. 官僚,官僚主义者,官僚作风的人【例句】He was just another faceless bureaucrat.他只不过是一个典型呆板的官员。

　　read up 攻读，研读

　　read up on 仔细研究；熟读（以准备考试）【例句】You can read up on water issues in your community, then attend town hall or water department hearings.你可以研究你所在小区的水议题，然后参与市政厅或水利机构的听证会。

　　powerhouse /'pa ʊə ha ʊ s/ n. 精力充沛的人，身强力壮的人；强大的集团（或组织）；强国；权势集团；权威人士；动力源【例句】He's a powerhouse, because he is so open.他是个精力充沛的人，因为他是如此的坦诚直率。Once the region's economic powerhouse, today, the Japanese economy is struggling.作为该地区曾经的经济强国，日本经济现如今正处于挣扎之中。

　　most-streamed 最热门的【例句】Somebody that I used to know' was the most streamed track in 2012.他的“Somebody that I used to know”排在2012年流音乐的榜首。

　　hatch /hæt ʃ / n. 舱口；孵化vt. 策划；孵【短语】hatch out 孵出；策划hatch cover 舱口盖；装货口盖escape hatch 安全舱口【例句】The chicks hatch out after fifteen days.小鸡过十五天就孵出来了。

　　priority /pra ɪ ' ɒ r ɪ t ɪ / n. 优先；优先权；优先次序；优先考虑的事【短语】give priority to 优先考虑；认为优先top priority 最优先的first priority 最优先；绝对优先权high priority n. 高优先级【例句】Debenture holder has priority over ordinary shareholder.债券持有人比普通股东享有优先权。

　　prerequisite /pri ː 'rekw ɪ z ɪ t/ n. 先决条件,前提【短语】prerequisite course 预修课程prerequisite condition 先决条件【例句】Training is a prerequisite for competence.接受训练是掌握技能的前提。

　　wince /w ɪ ns/ vi. 畏缩，退避n. 畏缩；脸部肌肉的抽搐【例句】He winced inwardly at her harsh tone.她那严厉的语气令他胆寒。

　　prime-time slot黄金时段【例句】The show was taken off its prime-time slot because the ratings dropped. 因为收视率下降，这个节目被移出了黄金时间档。

　　glue to 盯着；紧贴着；粘到…上；胶着在…上【例句】You know, every time I saw you at the theater, your eyes were glued to the floor.我每次在电影院看到你的时候 你都盯着地板看。

　　subscriber /səbˈskraɪbə / n. (报刊的)订阅人,订购者,订户； (慈善机关等的)定期捐款者,定期捐助者；消费者;用户【例句】Subscribers to the magazine can take advantage of this special offer.杂志订户可享有此项特惠。

　　co-founder /k əʊ 'fa ʊ nd ə / n. 共同创办人,共同创始人【例句】He's the co-founder of Promethean Power Systems.他是普罗米修斯电力系统的联合创始人。

　　fickle /'f ɪ k( ə )l/ adj. 易变的；浮躁的；变幻无常的【例句】They have no use for fickle supporters.他们不能容忍反覆无常的拥护者。

　　counterpart /'ka ʊ nt ə pɑ ː t/ n. 与对方地位相当的人, 与另一方作用相当的物【例句】Her counterpart left in vain and vapidity.对方索然无味，徙劳而去。

　　self-made /'self'meid/ adj. 自制的,自造的；靠自己努力而成功的,白手起家的【例句】He is a self-made man.  他是个白手起家的人。

　　stereotype /'sterɪə(ʊ)taɪp/ n. 老套, 模式化的见解, 有老一套固定想法的人vt. 把…模式化, 使成陈规【例句】I hate to buy into stereotypes.我厌恶墨守成规。

　　edgy /'edʒɪ/ adj. 不安的, 易激怒的【例句】The names of these buildings reflected the edginess of the architecture.这些建筑的名称也反映了该建筑的先潮特色。It serves confident women who are not afraid to show femininity through edgy designs.该品牌专为那些敢于用前卫设计展现女性气质的自信女人设计。