Every journalist dreads doing a vox pop. Hours of standing outside, microphone in hand, camera over shoulder, always looking for the ‘right client'; the person who'll give you a clear and concise comment on the subject. But local television in China has found a solution. Journalists (see photos) prepare comments in advance, and simply ask passers-by to read them out.

These pictures were taken in 2004 in Huangshi in the central China province of Hubei. Journalists from a local television station are ‘questioning' people on a Communist Party conference that took place in town. Controversy over the affair started to flare up on the discussion forum that first published the photographs. Authorities have now banned any comments on the subject.