Edwin Maher
Encyclopedia
Edwin Maher is a New Zealand
-born TV
journalist
who now works for CCTV International
in Beijing
, China
.
Maher established his broadcast career in Australia
, working many minor roles, particularly as a weatherman
, in many cities before beginning a 25-year stint with Australian Broadcasting Corporation
in 1979. He is mostly remembered in Melbourne
for his use of a varied and creative number of viewer submitted pointers to highlight items when delivering the ABC's Victorian state weather forecast.
In 2003, China Central Television
sought to expand its CCTV International
to be more professional and accessible to Western audiences. CCTV senior executive Jiang Heping
approached Maher, already working in China with CCTV as a voice coach, to become one of the first western anchors for the revamped network. Maher was offered the position because of his clear diction speaking English
and his experience in voice coaching. Maher taught speaking in private lessons through his company Maher Media Services, lectured at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
, and even released audio lessons on voice. He accepted the job with CCTV and started in March 2004. Besides anchoring a news broadcast a few afternoons a week, his duties include voice coaching to the Chinese staff.
CCTV is a state agency of the People's Republic of China
via the State Administration of Radio, Television, and Film. Its editorial bias is that of the Communist Party of China
. Maher answers criticism that he has become a paid mouthpiece for Chinese propaganda
by saying he only reads the news and is, "not trying to read into the news, not thinking about what is behind the content. Politically sensitive news, like any other news, has to be read clearly. That is my bottom line. Because I'm in China, some news may be regarded as politically sensitive or whatever, but that doesn't affect my interpretation of it to the audience." Maher also wrote articles for the English language China Daily
newspaper about his experiences learning Mandarin Chinese.
He appeared in the 2003 Australian movie Bad Eggs
as a news presenter reporting on the events at the end of the film.
In January 2010, it was announced that Mayer's life story would be adapted into a feature film, starring David Duchovny
.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
-born TV
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
who now works for CCTV International
CCTV News
CCTV News may refer to:* CCTV News, the news department itself, of China Central Television* CCTV News , a Chinese language news channel* CCTV NEWS, formerly CCTV-9, an English language news channel...
in Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
.
Maher established his broadcast career in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, working many minor roles, particularly as a weatherman
Weather forecasting
Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology to predict the state of the atmosphere for a given location. Human beings have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia, and formally since the nineteenth century...
, in many cities before beginning a 25-year stint with Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
in 1979. He is mostly remembered in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
for his use of a varied and creative number of viewer submitted pointers to highlight items when delivering the ABC's Victorian state weather forecast.
In 2003, China Central Television
China Central Television
China Central Television or Chinese Central Television, commonly abbreviated as CCTV, is the major state television broadcaster in mainland China. CCTV has a network of 19 channels broadcasting different programmes and is accessible to more than one billion viewers...
sought to expand its CCTV International
CCTV-9
CCTV-9 is the documentary channel of the television network, CCTV in the People's Republic of China. This channel has a local Mandarin Chinese edition called CCTV-9, and an international English language edition called CCTV-9 Documentary. The English edition is carried by more satellites than the...
to be more professional and accessible to Western audiences. CCTV senior executive Jiang Heping
Jiang Heping
Senior Editor Jiang Heping is a prominent executive at China Central Television , the state broadcaster of the People's Republic of China...
approached Maher, already working in China with CCTV as a voice coach, to become one of the first western anchors for the revamped network. Maher was offered the position because of his clear diction speaking English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and his experience in voice coaching. Maher taught speaking in private lessons through his company Maher Media Services, lectured at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology
RMIT University
RMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....
, and even released audio lessons on voice. He accepted the job with CCTV and started in March 2004. Besides anchoring a news broadcast a few afternoons a week, his duties include voice coaching to the Chinese staff.
CCTV is a state agency of the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
via the State Administration of Radio, Television, and Film. Its editorial bias is that of the Communist Party of China
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
. Maher answers criticism that he has become a paid mouthpiece for Chinese propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
by saying he only reads the news and is, "not trying to read into the news, not thinking about what is behind the content. Politically sensitive news, like any other news, has to be read clearly. That is my bottom line. Because I'm in China, some news may be regarded as politically sensitive or whatever, but that doesn't affect my interpretation of it to the audience." Maher also wrote articles for the English language China Daily
China Daily
The China Daily is an English language daily newspaper published in the People's Republic of China.- Overview :China Daily was established in June 1981 and has the widest print circulation of any English-language newspaper in the country...
newspaper about his experiences learning Mandarin Chinese.
He appeared in the 2003 Australian movie Bad Eggs
Bad Eggs
Bad Eggs is a 2003 Australian comedy movie, written and directed by Tony Martin. It stars Mick Molloy, Bob Franklin and Judith Lucy, with Alan Brough, Bill Hunter, Marshall Napier, Nicholas Bell, Steven Vidler, Shaun Micallef, Robyn Nevin, Brett Swain, Denis Moore and Pete Smith having supporting...
as a news presenter reporting on the events at the end of the film.
In January 2010, it was announced that Mayer's life story would be adapted into a feature film, starring David Duchovny
David Duchovny
David William Duchovny is an American actor, writer and director. He has won Golden Globe awards for his work as FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files and as Hank Moody on Californication.-Early life:...
.