春晚:"年夜飯"魅力不再?

Along with eating dumplings and setting off fireworks, watching the annual CCTV Spring Festival Gala has been a Lunar New Year ritual for many Chinese families over the past three decades.

在過去的三十年裏，吃餃子、放煙花、觀看一年一度的央視春節聯歡晚會已經成爲許多中國家庭的過年習俗。

The nearly five-hour long show draws between 400 million to 700 million viewers every year, according to statistics from CCTV. The 2012 gala, with an average reach of 499 million viewers, set a new Guinness World Record for the “Most Watched National Network TV Broadcast”.

據央視統計，時長近五個小時的春晚每年會吸引4至7億的觀衆。2012年春晚的觀衆人數達到了4.99億，成爲“世界上觀看人數最多的全國電視節目”，從而創下了一項新的吉尼斯世界紀錄。

Despite being a massively popular show, the CCTV gala is not merely entertainment.

儘管央視春晚人氣很高，但是它並不僅僅是一檔娛樂節目。

“It’s part of modern culture for Chinese people,” Huang Yihe, director of the first CCTV gala in 1983, told China Daily. “[People] have been working for a whole year and need an outlet to express their emotions.”

“對於中國人來說，它是現代文化的一部分，”1983年第一屆央視春晚的導演黃一鶴在接受《中國日報》採訪時表示。“（人們）辛苦工作一整年，需要一個出口來釋放自己的情感。”

The first CCTV gala was broadcast live at a time when it was considered a luxury to have a TV in China. As TV sets became affordable for more families, the gala turned into an indispensable part of the Lunar New Year.

第一屆春晚直播時，電視機在國內還是件奢侈品。隨着電視機走進尋常百姓家，春晚也變成了春節不可或缺的一部分。

Times, of course, have changed. “The gala is much more complicated than before,” 78-year-old Huang said. “The gala was born at a special time in our nation’s history. Like our country, it developed fast.”

當然，時代變了。“春晚比以往變得複雜多了。”78歲的黃一鶴說。“春晚誕生於我國曆史上一個特殊的時期。同我們的祖國一樣，它也在快速發展。”

Changes can be both good and bad. The gala’s popularity has gradually declined in recent years, with the number of comments criticizing the show increasing. Many critics are from the younger generations, lamenting the show’s lack of creativity and fun.

變化是把雙刃劍，有好有壞。近年來，春晚人氣逐漸下滑，批評聲音增多。很多批評聲來自年輕人，他們抱怨這個節目缺乏新意、毫無樂趣。

“Organizers need to know the audience and understand what they like,” said Wu Xiao, 22, a senior in English at Qingdao University.

“主辦方需要了解觀衆，投其所好。”來自青島大學英語專業的大四學生、22歲的吳曉（音譯）說。

Like many from the post-1990 generation, Wu is never short of entertainment choices on Lunar New Year’s Eve. Surfing the Internet and playing games on gadgets ― the CCTV gala is not a priority anymore.

同很多90後一樣，吳曉在除夕夜從不缺少娛樂方式。上網、玩遊戲——春晚不再是首選。

In order to attract viewers from a younger demographic, gala organizers have been putting much effort into finding out what they want. Months ago, director Ha Wen took her team to various cities to talk with young people and get feedback.

爲了吸引年輕受衆收看春晚，春晚節目組花大力氣來了解他們的喜好。幾個月前，導演哈文帶領團隊前往不同城市與年輕人交流，尋求反饋。

“We listened to them and hopefully they will get what they want from the show,” she said in an interview with Beijing Evening News last month.

“我們聽取了他們的建議，也希春晚能夠滿足他們的需求。”上個月她在接受《北京晚報》採訪時表示。

For the past few years, the gala has featured more pop stars, especially from Hong Kong and Taiwan. This year, international star Celine Dion is scheduled to make an appearance.

過去幾年裏，明星陣容成爲春晚的一大亮點，特別是一些港臺明星。今年更是邀來國際巨星席琳•迪翁助陣。

“I certainly appreciate their effort. Balancing viewers’ interests and the show’s variety is no easy task,” Wu said.

“我很感謝節目組做出的努力。平衡觀衆的口味與節目的多樣性，這並非易事。”吳曉說。

But one aspect of the gala has not changed, and that is the undeniable meaning it has for Chinese people.

但是春晚有一點沒有變，就是對於中國人而言，它蘊含了不可否認的意義。

Despite the negativity, most Chinese people always watch CCTV on Lunar New Year’s Eve. Zhu Jun, who hosted the gala for 15 years, said in his book My Midnight Moment: “It is more like a habit for most Chinese people on that special night.”

儘管負面聲音不斷，但是大多數中國人在除夕夜還是會收看央視春晚。主持了15屆央視春晚的朱軍在《我的零點時刻》一書中寫道：“在這個特殊的夜晚，對於大多數中國人而言，看春晚更像是一種習慣。”