“China: Power and Prosperity” from PBS NewsHour is an engaging, feature-length investigation of China’s internal progress and its expanding power and influence around the world.
Drawing on insights from more than 70 interviewees, the film examines the values held by President Xi Jinping and how his embrace of communist ideals will shape the country’s future. Is his effort a successful diagnosis of the Chinese, or a compromised system that squanders individual freedom?
In some parts of the country, the president has a reputation as an almost mythical leader. Evidence of “Xi worship” can be seen everywhere in the countryside. Billboards and films have been produced in his honor, and school curricula have been designed to promote his infallibility. Meanwhile, in cities like Hong Kong, demonstrators took to the streets to protest the president’s crackdown on power games and the abolition of basic human rights. They cite his extensive use of prison camps, surveillance cameras and other paranoid-based abuses of power.
The Belt and Road Initiative is the most expensive infrastructure development program in history, and Xi Jinping’s promise to open up the rest of the world to the lucrative one will have a positive impact on all Chinese. Critics see it as bypassing unprecedented levels of corruption on a global scale.
The film also delves into China’s tech stronghold, particularly as it relates to the trade war waged by U.S. President Donald Trump. The filmmakers accuse China of stealing and misappropriating many of the most important products and technologies developed in the United States, including high-end cameras, tennis shoes and military hardware.
Almost every investigative segment of the film reveals the title’s precarious balance of power and wealth. The country is getting EVs right on the road, but license plates are issued to only a few through a lottery system, severely limiting driving privileges for millions. Surveillance companies claim their efforts are creating a safer environment for everyone, but others insist they indulge in nefarious information gathering.
China: Power and Prosperity takes a comprehensive look at many aspects of modern Chinese life and industry, and how they affect China’s image in the rest of the world.
