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Primetime Dispute Resolution: Reality TV Mediation Shows in C hina's “Harmonious Society”
Author(s) -
Hawes Colin S.,
Kong Shuyu
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
law and society review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.867
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1540-5893
pISSN - 0023-9216
DOI - 10.1111/lasr.12046
Subject(s) - mediation , lawyer supported mediation , alternative dispute resolution , harmony (color) , conflict resolution , social conflict , government (linguistics) , law , political science , sociology , politics , public relations , social psychology , dispute mechanism , psychology , art , visual arts , linguistics , philosophy
Through a case study of reality TV mediation shows, this article joins the debate about the recent promotion of formal and informal mediation by the C hinese government, what some scholars have called a “turn against law” ( M inzner 2011). We identify three converging reasons for the sudden popularity of mediation shows on C hinese primetime television: (1) the desire of TV producers to commercially exploit interpersonal conflicts without fanning the flames of social instability; (2) the demands of official censors for TV programming promoting a “harmonious society”; and (3) the requirement for courts and other government institutions to publicly demonstrate their support for mediation as the most “appropriate” method for resolving interpersonal and neighborhood disputes. Cases drawn from two top‐rated mediation shows demonstrate how they privilege morality and “human feeling” ( ganqing ) over narrow application of the law. Such shows could be viewed merely as a form of propaganda, what N ader has called a “harmony ideology”—an attempt by the government to suppress the legitimate expression of social conflict. Yet while recognizing that further political, social, and legal reforms are necessary to address the root causes of social conflict in C hina, we conclude that TV mediation shows can help to educate viewers about the benefits and drawbacks of mediation for resolving certain narrow kinds of domestic and neighborhood disputes.

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