(本文選自《經濟學人》20201128期)
背景介紹:
《非誠勿擾》是江蘇衛視製作的一檔大型婚戀交友真人秀節目,自2010年首次播出以來,如今已連續播出10年之久,可以稱得上是相親類節目的 「鼻祖」 了。《非誠勿擾》自播出以來引發了眾多極具爭議性的話題,其中被提及最多的正是節目中所顯現的拜金主義。
Officials in China abhor money-worship. A dating show glorifies it
Censors frown on 「If You Are The One」, but the programme is wildly popular
Few chinese television programmes command as loyal a fan base as 「If You Are The One」, a matchmaking show now in its tenth year. In its early days, some 50m viewers tuned in to each episode—an audience second only to the evening news bulletin produced by the state broadcaster.
中國很少有電視節目能像《非誠勿擾》(一檔開播10年之久的相親節目)這樣擁有這麼多忠實粉絲。早年間,每期《非誠勿擾》有近5000萬觀眾收看,這一收視量僅次於央視的晚間新聞。Today 「If You Are The One」 is the sixth-most-watched show in China. But this modest dip in its domestic ranking has been offset by gains overseas. Broadcasters in Australia and Malaysia have picked it up. Episodes on YouTube attract millions of views around the world.
如今,《非誠勿擾》的收視率在中國電視節目中排在第六。但國內熱度消退的同時,《非誠勿擾》在海外越來越火了。除了被澳大利亞和馬來西亞的電視臺轉播外,其在 YouTube 上發布的視頻也獲得了數百萬的點擊量。Each instalment features a male contestant and 24 prospective female dates. The charismatic moderator, Meng Fei, a former news anchor, invites the bachelorettes to grill the bachelor on any topic they like. The main draw of the show lies in their questions, which often focus on the man’s financial standing.
每期節目都會安排一位男嘉賓與24位女嘉賓相親。魅力四射的主持人孟非曾是一名新聞主播,他會在節目中請女嘉賓向男嘉賓提問。該節目最精彩之處就在於女嘉賓的提問,她們的問題往往集中於男嘉賓的經濟狀況。In one of the show’s first episodes, a female participant famously quipped that she would rather 「cry in a BMW」 than smile on the back of her boyfriend’s bicycle. In another one a woman refused to shake a contestant’s hand because he made less than 200,000 yuan ($30,400) a month.
在《非誠勿擾》第一季的某期節目中,一位女嘉賓打趣地說,她「寧願坐在寶馬車裡哭,也不願坐在自行車上笑。」在另一期節目中,一位女嘉賓拒絕與一位男嘉賓牽手,只因其月薪不足20萬(約合30400美元)。Such unabashed hankering after wealth on a programme watched by legions of young Chinese made the Communist Party feel uneasy. Media regulators promptly ordered the show to stop 「showcasing and hyping up money-worship」 on pain of cancellation.
這樣一檔擁有大批年輕觀眾的電視節目卻如此不加掩飾地崇尚拜金主義,這著實令人不安。媒體監管機構隨即要求該節目停止「展現並宣揚拜金主義」,否則或將下架該節目。These days, female candidates on the programme are no longer allowed to ask male contestants how much they earn or which car they drive. Hobbies from rugby to rap have become the go-to topics of conversation.
如今,節目中的女嘉賓已不再明目張胆地問男嘉賓掙多少錢或開什麼車了,而是聊起了男嘉賓的業餘愛好(從橄欖球到說唱)。Yet 「wealth fetishism」 remains an undercurrent, notes Siyu Chen, a Chinese scholar. The questions are just phrased more diplomatically. Bachelors are probed about their jobs rather than their salaries.
中國學者陳思宇指出,「拜金主義」仍在暗流湧動。提問的措辭變得更講究了。既然不能問掙多少錢,那就問問他們是做什麼工作的吧。Tactfulness is not always observed. In a recent episode one bachelorette asked whether the man was willing to subsidise her monthly rent of 6,800 yuan. Incidents like this often prompt angry (male) viewers to dig up and publish private information about the 「female offender」 on Baidu Tieba, a social-media forum which hosts a fan page for the show containing 16m user-generated posts. Many female commentators ridicule these 「insecure」 men.
但並不是所有的女嘉賓都能保持委婉克制。在最近的一期節目中,一位女嘉賓問男嘉賓是否願意每月為她支付6800元的房租。諸如此類的事件經常會激起一些(男性)觀眾的憤怒,他們會人肉這位「拜金女」的私人信息,並將其發布在百度貼吧(一個社交媒體論壇)的非誠勿擾吧中,該吧的吧友如今已發布了1600萬個帖子。許多女網友會嘲笑這些「缺乏安全感」的男性。Censors reckon the show could try harder to tone down the money motive. Last year the government published an 「Outline for the Moral Construction of Citizens in the New Era」. It identifies 「money worship」 as a cause of 「moral failure」.
審查機構認為,該節目應該進一步淡化拜金傾向。在去年政府發布的《新時代公民道德建設綱要》中,「拜金主義」被認為是導致「道德失範」的一個原因。In February regulators hinted that dating shows were not helping. But 「If You Are The One」 keeps going. Perhaps officials deem that Mr Meng, the host, has done just enough to restrain his contestants』 impulses.
今年2月,監管機構曾暗示相親節目不僅沒有推動社會道德的建設,反而在拖後腿。但《非誠勿擾》至今仍在繼續播出。官方或許認為,主持人孟非已經盡力去抑制女嘉賓的拜金傾向了。(紅色標註詞為重難點詞彙)
本文翻譯:Vinnie
校核:Vinnie
編輯:Vinnie
作為一檔開播10年之久的老牌綜藝,《非誠勿擾》在國內的收視率正在呈現頹勢,但在國外卻越來越火了。而提起《非誠勿擾》,最讓人印象深刻的便是「寧願坐在寶馬車裡哭,也不願坐在自行車上笑」和「握次手20萬」等一些女嘉賓的拜金主義言論。如今,節目中女嘉賓的言論雖然已在保持委婉克制,但仍然難掩拜金主義的傾向。
offset [ˈɔːfset] n. 抵消;補償 v. 抵消;彌補instalment [ɪnˈstɔːlmənt] n. 分期付款;裝設;就職bachelorette [ˌbætʃələˈret] n. 未婚女子undercurrent [ˈʌndərkɜːrənt] n. 暗流;潛流tactful [ˈtæktfl] adj. 機智的;圓滑的;老練的每天一篇雙語經濟學人沒有看夠!
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