Press Release

A Year of Power and Leadership Transition

Top Media Celebrities in Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei in 2007

The Language Information Sciences Research Centre (LISRC) of the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has released the 8th Annual Pan-Chinese Celebrity Rosters for 2007. This year’s rosters mark a transition of power and leadership around the world.

The rosters consist of regional rankings of celebrities gaining the most media exposure in the cities of Beijing, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei, as well as a Pan-Chinese ranking covering celebrities appearing in the Beijing, Hong Kong and Taipei rosters. The results are based on accumulative exposure from the bi-weekly rosters compiled throughout 2007.

The Pan-Chinese roster (column A) has accommodated 21 celebrities this year, which is about a 20% drop compared with last year’s. Of the 21 identities, political figures have occupied 18. This year’s Pan-Chinese roster is most remarkable for its highlighting of changes in global leadership.

The focus on various Chinese-speaking communities also varied considerably. Ma Ying-jeou, Hu Jintao, Chen Shui-bian, and George W. Bush stand high in the Pan-Chinese roster, while Hu, Chen and Bush make it onto all the individual Hong Kong, Beijing, and Taipei regional rosters. 

Sports figures are less prominent this year, despite the approaching Beijing Olympics, though the seemingly invincible Yao Ming made it onto the roster for the seventh consecutive year.

Looking at the individual regional rosters (columns B to E), Hong Kong and Taipei apparently share more common topics. The ratio of local and non-local celebrities in the individual rosters varies widely.

The Hong Kong roster comprises just 40% local celebrities. Thanks to the Legco by-election, Anson Chan and Regina Ip have gained as much media exposure, making it to second and third respectively on the regional roster headed by Donald Tsang. Andy Lau and Lydia Shum continue to represent showbiz. Meanwhile, the appearance of Alan Leong, Tsui Po-ko, Paul Morris, and Nina Kung’s on the roster owes much to several newsworthy incidents in Hong Kong last year.

The Annual Celebrity Roster list is in the Appendix, and full details can be found at http://www.livac.org/celebrity/. 

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CityU excels in professional education and applied research.

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Enquiries can be directed to:

        Prof. Benjamin Tsou, LISRC, City University of Hong Kong (27889288 / 92318256)

        Dr. Olivia Kwong, LISRC, City University of Hong Kong (27889771 / 97552672)

Karen Cheng, Communications Office, City University of Hong Kong (3442 6805 / 9201 8895)

Appendix:

Table 1: Annual Celebrity Roster 2007

Table 2: Distribution of local and non-local celebrities in regional rosters (%)