CGTN news editor Teoh El Sen was also a former journalist in Malaysia (Photo: Teoh El Sen)
Among all the assignments Teoh El Sen had to undertake as a journalist of China Global Television Network (CGTN), ushering in the New Year in Xi’an city by reading poetry was, by far, the more memorable and peculiar one.
“I was part of a worldwide broadcast, while facilitating cultural shows and asking the public to recite poetry. For my segment, I read a few poems by A Samad Said in Malay and sang Rasa Sayang, to the delight of my colleagues and onlookers,” recalls Teoh, formerly an assistant manager of the Securities Commission Malaysia as well as a Malay Mail reporter, who joined the state-run TV network’s business department as a news editor in November 2019.
That role drastically evolved to include managing social media platforms, training anchors and young hires, editing videos as well as voicing-over some of the network’s productions. These days, Teoh is mostly a copy editor leading an army of writers who are given one crucial marching order: communicate with clarity, flow and logic. The keen-eyed newsman also protects any reporting that escapes his workplace — the CCTV building, one of Beijing’s most iconic spots nicknamed da ku cha, or “big underpants” — against accusations of plagiarism, bias and fake news when it appears on TV and the company’s website.
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Words, from a foreigner’s lips to a native’s ears, may sound different even when one tries to adapt in a new country that uses the same lingo. Teoh, who acknowledges his lack of proficiency in Mandarin despite studying Chinese until Form 2, is glad that relocating to Beijing has helped him revive some buried memories of the language.
“We speak mainly Mandarin and English at home,” says the Melakan, youngest of three children born to secondary school teachers who retired as principals. “Mum speaks Mandarin and Dad is from a Peranakan family.
“There’s a pretty large gap between my elder brother, sister, also a teacher, and me. We’re not rich but we’re not poor either; so, I’d consider myself ‘born with a silver spoon’, as I’m blessed with a loving family. All of us are still quite tight-knit until today. Here’s a fun fact about our names: My brother is Han Sen and my sister is El Von; mine is a combination of theirs.”
This close unit of five gained a new addition in December 2021, when Teoh married Yvonne Lim, who works at CGTN now as an international desk editor. The pair met as teenagers and became friends but fate brought them together again during their early 30s.
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“Yvonne grew up a Christian. I took an interest in her faith but only truly found mine when I came to China. When I proposed via Zoom, she was in Malaysia while I was stuck in Beijing due to Covid-19. But, by the grace of God, I managed to go home after a 14-day quarantine in Kepong. We held a small but beautiful wedding surrounded by our loved ones,” says Teoh.
How he serendipitously ended up in China, though, seems preordained. “While we were dating, Yvonne told me she felt it was her calling to come here but struggled to get an opportunity despite applying to many places, including CGTN. In 2019, in what I could describe as a miracle, I got an offer to work there after one [interview] attempt. I took it up, not knowing I’d be unable to travel anywhere for the next couple of years due to the pandemic. Finally, Yvonne landed her current job in 2022, and we even managed to spend a month in Seoul for our honeymoon. In a nutshell, her calling became mine. And what’s that? It’s a conviction within us that because God loves us, He wants us to tell and show the world, but somehow He’s chosen for us to do that in China.”
What does Teoh, no stranger to the newsroom by now, think about the media landscape in China as compared with Malaysia?
“It’s complex and challenging. Well, remember the time when Malaysian mainstream media had to tiptoe around certain topics to avoid offending certain people or parties due to ownership or impending threat of shutdown? China is like that, but on a much larger scale. It has a lot of local media houses but I’m not sure if the range of views is quite as diverse.”
Home for the couple is currently Beijing, a global melting pot that Teoh also considers a study of opposites and contradictions. Rules are strictly enforced to preserve the pristine image of this progressive city; yet, unsavoury trends such as “Beijing Bikini” — a sartorial habit whereby middle-aged men roll up their shirts to expose a full belly when the summer temperature sizzles — grip the great capital.
“There’s so much history and culture, but a lot of them are being forgotten. Some people can be so selfish; yet, others have shown us how one can be selfless. People may have misconceptions about the city, like how it feels very unsafe, but I’ve left my keys, phone and laptop around for hours without anyone snatching them up. Plus, the sky is not so smoggy anymore — the government has done a lot of cleaning up by promoting electric vehicles. Being here has really opened my mind to a bigger, wider world. The oft-quoted saying is really not untrue: You will know the ‘real China’ only if you live here and experience all its different facets.”
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For the intrepid traveller, he recommends shopping at Hopson One Mall near his home in Shuangjing as well as sampling the sour vegetable fish at Tai Er; roast duck at Peking Chambers; and old-style hotpot at Beijing Three Brothers. In addition, round up your friends for a driving excursion to seek out the best kao quan yang (whole-roasted lamb) that boasts crispy-thin skin and tender flesh.
The adventurous husband and wife, having explored a handful of Chinese cities and revelled in the appeal of each, may not move back to Malaysia so soon. But Teoh is often reminded of both countries’ similarities and friendship.
“I’ve always been a hopeless optimist. There are endless possibilities between the two nations that have shared ties not just in the last 50 years but since the time Admiral Zheng He visited Melaka. There’s so much they can learn from each other culturally and not just from a purely economic perspective.”
This article first appeared on June 24, 2024 in The Edge Malaysia's 'Loong Report', which commemorates 50 years of Malaysia-China relations.
