Finding their own voices

For 25-year-old Pang Zheng from Hunan province, a cherished childhood memory is dining with her parents while watching News and Science, a program on Hunan Satellite TV that verifies and interprets phenomena through experiments and data.

Inspired by its presenters, Pang decided to pursue the same path. In 2018, she enrolled in the broadcasting and hosting major at the Shanghai Theatre Academy, determined to one day appear on-screen as a professional TV host. Her journey seemed firmly on track when she interned at Hunan Satellite TV and even recorded several episodes for News and Science, the very show she grew up watching.

In 2022, she topped the postgraduate program entrance exams at her university. A career as a TV host seemed within reach.

But her life was soon upended when her father was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. Her mother left her job to care for him full-time.

Pang, then a postgraduate student, chose to shoulder the responsibility of supporting her family as the breadwinner.

She turned to the booming e-commerce sector, taking up part-time livestreaming work to sell products online.

"I accepted every job I could fit into my schedule," Pang recalls, often working until 3 am.

While this work supported her family, it also made her feel that her dream of becoming a TV host was "slipping further away".

As months passed, she grew increasingly unsure about her future — whether she could still enter the television industry, or if she was even suited for the job anymore.

A turning point arrived in July with the recruitment call for the reality show Exciting Offer 7, which gathers aspiring young hosts to compete for a position at Dragon TV through an intensive internship.

"I saw it as a now-or-never moment to chase my dream," Pang says.

The workplace reality show, currently streaming on Tencent Video, offers viewers an insider's view of the hosting profession.

Since its launch in 2019, the show has featured various professionals in fields such as law, medicine and architecture.

Regarding this year's focus on hosting, director Wu Haoyu explains: "In today's media landscape where everyone can access and participate in content creation, the public is already familiar with news programs, interviews and variety shows. Choosing this profession naturally sparks widespread discussion while showcasing the professional competence and charm of hosts."

In the current season, guided by established hosts such as Chen Luyu and Bai Xuxu, the contestants face challenges that test every dimension of professional skill: live reporting, in-depth interviews, and realtime coverage of major events.

To replicate the unpredictability of the newsroom, the production team often introduces unexpected hurdles — a failed teleprompter or a last-minute script change.

Yet, for Pang, who was selected as one of the 10 interns, this high-pressure crucible of diverse challenges gave her a newfound certainty that she was well-suited to the hosting profession.

She discovered that the experience and skills she had honed as an e-commerce livestream host proved invaluable for the challenges on the show.

That preparation was put to the test during a live relay broadcast at a major expo, when the next reporting team failed to arrive on time. Remaining calm before the cameras, Pang filled the airtime with poised, insightful commentary until relief arrived.

She recalls her early e-commerce days speaking to empty virtual rooms for hours, and says: "That experience was invaluable.

"For a period of time, I had no viewers, no sales, not even any comments. I had to keep talking to a silent screen."

That very experience prepared her perfectly for the expo broadcast emergency.

Pang says that after each challenge, veteran mentors offered scores and detailed feedback, which gave her clear insight into both her strengths and areas for improvement. Pang consistently ranked first in the program's initial three rounds.

"The consistent, positive feedback I received on the show helped me develop genuine self-acceptance," she says.

Over time, her focus shifted from chasing the final job offer to valuing the recognition itself. "What truly matters," she reflects, "is that I have been seen."

Emboldened by this new clarity, she is now planning a podcast series featuring interviews with women from diverse professional fields.

But for 23-year-old Zhang Shiwen, a graduate student at the Communication University of China, the program brought mixed feedback. Her debut challenge showed her as organized, resilient and leadership-oriented, but her second task as team leader revealed different qualities.

"Initially, audiences seemed to project an idealized image onto me — they saw an ambitious, highly capable young woman," Zhang reflects.

"But when they discovered I'm also sensitive and sometimes prone to overthinking, their perception shifted."

Critical and even abusive direct messages began to flood her social media accounts, which Zhang believes stem from misunderstandings about who she truly is.

"I'm becoming more aware that I need to accept these different voices," she reflects. "I feel my inner self growing stronger."

The seed of Zhang's media career was sown a decade ago at the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, where she — then a middle school student with a passion for history — was taking notes in front of the exhibits.

A man, who she later learned was a Xinhua News Agency journalist, approached to see what she had written and remarked that she had the makings of a reporter.

That casual compliment sparked her career aspirations.

"I wanted to become a witness and recorder of history as a media professional," she recalls.

On the show, Zhang struggled with shifting between different on-screen personas.

"News anchors need authority, interview hosts require calm strength, and variety hosts must entertain," she explains.

Comparing herself with other contestants — some warm and bubbly, others soft-spoken and charming — a "nerdy" Zhang worried she might lack the easy relatability audiences expect.

That was when mentor Chen Luyu offered pivotal advice: "Find your own voice."

Chen, a seasoned broadcaster herself, understands the insecurities of newcomers.

"Many young people entering this profession, being constantly evaluated from the outset, easily lose their anchor point and confidence," she notes.

She says she aims to "provide improvement guidance when they feel they are doing well and offer reassurance when they doubt themselves", conducting multi-hour feedback sessions for the interns.

Encouraged by Chen, Zhang began focusing less on her shortcomings and more on leveraging her strengths, such as her knowledge of history, interest in military affairs and logical thinking capabilities.

"I need to keep exploring," Zhang says. "Through this process, I will definitely find my own voice."