Modern Media -An Inseparable Part
of the life of Plateau Residents

　　 The modern media has penetrated every aspect of Tibetan people's lives and has exerted a great influence on their outlook and values. The Tibetan New Year is the most important festival for Tibetan people. On New Year's day, Tibetan people listen to the "zhegar" ballad on the radio or television. In farming and pastoral areas, radio and television programs are the major source of entertainment in the slack season. The program, "Listeners' Requests", is enjoyed by farmers and herders, who can request a song to be played for their friends and relatives. The program has become a bridge to help people know each other and create solid friendships. Dengqen Village is situated in the depths of the mountains on the North Tibet Plateau. The villagers don't feel that the night is long and lonely any more. When dusk sets in, Cering Doje who is over 50 and his family sit in front of the television and enjoy the colorful programs while sipping buttered tea. Amid laughter, he said jokingly, 'I would have been asleep by now three years ago." Stars shine like bright lights in the sky and deserted alleys are quite, the silence only occasionally broken by voices and songs from television. In the Tibetan-style sitting room of Cering Doje, his mother Qoingar, neighbors Zholma Lhamo and Lhaba and his grandchildren were sitting around in high spirits, watching a video of A Journey to the WCAt, which has been dubbed into Tibetan. Qoingar patted the white-haired Zholma Lhamo and said, "Zholma Lhamo and Lhaba have television sets at home. Tonight they came over specially to watch our video." Only three years ago, electricity was still a luxury for people in Dengqen Village, let alone a television. They led a dull life without any entertainment, working during the day and going to bed right after supper. In 1996, with the setting up of the township radio and television reception station and Dengqen Power Station, a 2,400-thousand-yuan project financed by Hainan Province with a 1,200-thousand Watt capacity, the villagers started to buy television sets, cassette recorders and even video recorders. "People's lives are getting better now, and most of us can afford a television set," Cering Doje said. His standard of living is about average in the village. His family has 2.8 hectares of farming fields and the yearly yield reaches more than 6,000 kilograms. He has more than 40 yaks and sheep. During his spare time, he manufactures iron farming tools. Last year the family's income was over 15,600 yuan. "In the past, we went to bed before ten o'clock," Zhaxi Qoinpei told us. "Today we stay up late till midnight, no matter whether the program is interesting or not. We prefer movies and programs dubbed into Tibetan, Tibetan songs and documentaries on science, education or agriculture. We also like the programs produced by our county. To celebrate an event, we can request a song to be played on the county station. I chose a song to express my thanks to the county's power station several days ago." To enable the vii-lagers to receive more channels, the county government had cables extended to this village. Now the villagers can get an additional 12 channels. More and more farmers and herders are buying television sets. A survey report indicates that 87 among the 157 households in the Dengqen Village own 80 radio sets and 125 cassette recorders; 33 households plan to buy a television set; and quite a few own video recorders. The popularity of television has not only enriched the lives of farmers and herders in Tibet but has also changed their values. Two years ago, encouraged by the prosperity of the township enterprises, women in the village gathered several poor families together and set up a wool processing factory to manufacture knitting cord and Tibetan-style quilts by making use of the locally produced wool. Their new products have been sold in big cities like Beijing. Commercial schemes are becoming rooted in the brain of the villagers. Some 200 people go up the mountains to pick Chinese caterpillar fungus during the slack season. In recent years, the annual income of the whole village has reached 2.5 million yuan. The television programs make the villagers aware of the importance of knowledge. The rate of children attending school is up to 90 percent from 70 percent two years ago. Afraid of being left behind, young men and women are starting to take part in training classes and read more. A cultural center was established this year, which has more than 1,000 books. Qi Fei, deputy secretary of the county who is in charge of the county's cultural activities, said, "The Dengqen Village is a good example to illustrate the importance of the cultural development of the countryside. We are now publicizing their experiences throughout the whole county. Today, the Dengqen Village has 11 television relay stations, which cover the whole territory. The county financial department has allocated 40,000 yuan to villages specially for subscription to newspapers. More than 80 newspaper-reading groups are active in the farming and pastoral areas the year round. Many farmers and herders have formed a habit of reading in their spare time. Unlike the Dengqen villagers, O'zhol from the Mainri Valley in the southeast of Nyingchi County pays more attention to radio broadcasts. It is part of his routine that every day he listens to the radio. Born with a limp, the old tailor said that he started listening to the radio in 1980, which helped him better understand the reform and opening policies of the state, the preferential policies for Tibet made by the Central Government as well as learn from others' experiences about how to become rich. This encouraged him and made him determined to continue in the family business as a tailor, so he could enjoy a good standard of living. In the past 20-odd years, O'zhol had become a well-known tailor in the area. Most of those beautiful "Gongbo" clothes, which are finely tailored were made by him. By 1987, O'zhol was a success and able to finance a special radio station-"The Countryside Radio Station"-to transmit the programs of the Central People's Broadcasting Station and the Tibet People's Broadcasting Station. He said, "It is due to good policies that I was able to break away from poverty and become rich." Through the loudspeaker, he publicized state policies, regulations and agricultural knowledge so as to let more know how to become rich. Local experts believe that the radio and television have become the main channels for Tibetans to learn about the outside world and acquire new information. High mountains and turbulent rivers no longer block a person's pursuit of knowledge and wealth. As the development of transportation and telecommunication, and the improvement of living standards continue, more and more libraries in the countryside are being established, and reading is becoming a necessary part of the lives of farmers and herders. All in all, in an era of reform and opening to the outside world and as the socialist market economy is being constructed, the media in Tibet has undertaken and will continue to undertake the historical mission of spreading scientific, technological and economic knowledge to Tibet, other parts of China and the world. This is improving understanding and exchanges on a small and large scale.