Jackie Chan is more than just a martial artist who can act in movies. He’s a cultural icon in China. As such, anything he says or does impacts a nation of one-point-four billion people. Chan hasn’t been without controversy during his career, but a new dispute involving his shampoo could be the one to end it. And as Susan Tart tells us, it may damage much more than just his locks.
A Chinese herbal shampoo called Bawang was popular in China in recent year not only because of its claims to treat male baldness by also its image ambassador – Jackie Chan. Recently, this brand of shampoo is under a spotlight as Hong Kong's Next Magazine said its shampoos contain unsafe levels of 1,4-dioxane, a cancer-causing chemical.
Yesterday we showed the first part of BON reporter Hattie Zhao's report on China's rise as the second largest economy in the world. We took a look at what contributed to the country's dramatic growth in GDP over the past several years, as well as the rising issues the country now faces due to its new clout as an emerging economic powerhouse- Issues that include migration, pollution, and growing inequality between classes.
In Part One, we learned that China’s real estate bubble has dramatically widened the gap between the country's rich and poor. And this disparity can be evidenced in the fact that though China’s per capita GDP is less than that of developing nations like Namibia and Ecuador- it now boasts the world’s second largest consumption of luxury goods.
Today, as we continue the second part of Hattie’s report, we take a look at the everyday life of ordinary Chinese people- how their lives are changing as their country’s economy continues to change.
Yesterday we ended the program with Kerstin’s interview- as she spoke of the changes her family has experienced in the past 10 years of China's economic rise.
Now yesterday we had reaction from microbloggers about (PIC) the generation gap and a recent article from New Weekly magazine. It drew a lot of attention from those standing on both sides of the generation gap when it claimed that in terms of attitude towards work, members of today’s younger generation are lazier than their elders. So how true is this? Well our reporter Stella Chen went out on the streets of Beijing to ask some older and younger people what they think…
Hangzhou was settled as early as 4,700 years ago, one of the seven ancient capitals, the scenic tourisms and historical culture cities in China. Hangzhou once was applauded as " the most splendid and luxurious city in the world" by Marco Polo, the Italian traveler in the 13th century.
As a key national tourist city, historical and cultural city and sub-provincial level city as confirmed by the State Council, Hangzhou, renowned as "Paradise on Earth", "Cultural State", "Home to Silk", "Home of Tea" and "Land of Fish and Rice", is going to have a more promising tomorrow.
Now, yesterday here on Beyond the Headlines we went out on the streets to ask people how they felt about making some forms of betting legal in China.
But while the law remains as it is, the authorities' continue in their battle against the illegal gambling industry and those who can't resist the opportunity to make – or lose – a quick buck. BON's Susan Tart has the story of one raid in southern China.