Truth behind accidents weighs heavier

The media usually know what the public is most eager to read or see after major accidents or natural disasters, especially if they claim lives. In such circumstances, media outlets go on an overdrive to meet people's needs and address their concerns.

Media reports and authoritative information from the government usually constitute two different but inseparable parts of one whole picture the public is desperate to see. This simple fact, however, remains alien to many local governments in the country. Apart from their stereotype disclosure of information on what they consider "negative news", many local governments choose to employ excessive official jargons and clich��s in praising their rescue and relief work, instead of disclosing the efforts they have made and the measures they have taken to meet people's quest for the truth.

At a news briefing held by the county government of Changyuan in Henan province after a fire in a KTV bar claimed the lives of 11 people on Dec 15, local officials used ornamental language to indulge in self-praise, saying the "county Party chief and other officials rushed to the site in time" and "manpower was mobilized from multiple departments for an all-out firefighting and rescue" operation.