Show Cover

# Review

Never in a million years did I expect there to be a Cops-like reality TV show based in China, but here we are. Guarding Jiefangxi is a show that follows the officers from Pozi Street Police Station in Changsha, Hunan Province, as they tackle various cases of different severities. The show is sponsored by Dong Peng, a Chinese energy drink company.

Jiefangxi is a well-known party district, so many of the cases deal with typical party crimes like public drunkenness and fights. There were also many serious cases such as sexual assault and drug dealing. As a Chinese reality TV show, the producers probably had to walk a fine line between entertainment and propaganda. I always thought the Chinese criminal system is rigidly efficient, but this show definitely changed my mind. Maybe because of the cameras, but the police officers featured were actually very empathetic, such as letting first-time offenders off with a stern warning. On the entertainment front, the show uses many techniques popular with Asian reality TV shows, such as cutesy animations, even for serious crimes.

It was also interesting on the differences between Chinese policing and that of the West; it’s surprising how much more efficient policing is with widespread surveillance. I also think the Chinese probably catch more petty criminals than the West. The Chinese police officers also use Wechat in their policing (to contact stakeholders directly), which seems much more efficient than the bureaucratic forms-based system that I had to use in my (few) interactions with the Canadian police.

# Conclusion

A sanitized (and unexpected) look into the Chinese policing system.

# Overall rating: 7.5

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