Enlightenment or Entertainment: The Nurturance of an Aesthetic Public Sphere Through a Popular Talent Show in China

Abstract

In mapping out the structures of representation surrounding a popular talent show in China, this study supports the idea that aesthetic evaluations and discussions more often than not extend into areas of broader concerns. By discussing a popular entertainment program, cultural critics have helped nurture public spheres in which civic issues can be enthusiastically and creatively talked about. The aesthetic public sphere essentially provides an extension of the formal Habermasian public sphere, thus suggesting a more significant civic role for entertainment programs.

Acknowledgments

Earlier versions of this article were presented at the 2008 Eastern Sociological Society annual conference and the 2009 Center of Cultural Sociology Spring Conference at Yale University. I thank Ronald Jacobs and Jennifer Stromer-Galley for their intellectual guidance and support; Brian McKernan for his comments on all of the drafts; the sociology department's culture reading group and the communication department's proseminar for the faculty members' and fellow students' feedback and suggestions at earlier stages of this research. Thanks also to the anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments.

Notes

¹ All newspaper quotes used in this article are translated from Chinese into English by the author.