Weekend.
Television Station.
The interview was scheduled to begin at eight o'clock, and Jiang Ye arrived at six.
Indeed, the television station building was more magnificent than anticipated, a glass-fronted skyscraper, about thirty stories tall. Its overall shape resembled an inverted microphone, with a metallic frame that gleamed under the sun. This television station was constructed to planetary standards, designed to last for many years, with most of the rooms initially left vacant.
A few scattered lights shone from the windows. Currently, only miscellaneous workers were present in the station: cleaners, electricians, equipment operators, and security guards.
As soon as Jiang Ye entered the building, many people rushed to greet him.
"Mr. Jiang!"
"The interview venue is all set. I'll take you there!"
"There's still some leftover renovation debris that hasn't been cleared. Please watch your step!"
"Quick, quick, serve the Grand General some tea!"
"Mr. Jiang, have you had breakfast? I'll have someone prepare something!"
Jiang Ye waved his hand, "No need to fuss, everyone. I'll just look around myself. Don't mind me, just carry on with your work."
Jiang Ye strolled through the television station building with his hands behind his back. It was his first time at a television station, and everything was incredibly novel. There were many rooms he couldn't understand, and various strange and peculiar pieces of equipment. Jiang Ye became a curious child, asking questions everywhere.
"What is this machine used for?"
"Reporting, Chief. This is a stadium camera. It can capture high-speed moving balls and prevent motion blur. The videos it shoots are as clear as photographs, frame by frame. In the future, it will be used for broadcasting ball sports."
"Are these plants potted? Why are there so many in one room?"
"Reporting, Chief. These plants are used to shield against signal interference. Small, complex environmental signals are absorbed by the leaves. They need to be cultivated and then planted throughout the entire building."
"What is this device for?"
"It's a virtual anchor generator, including the control screen here and the projection equipment on the ceiling over there. You can try playing with it."
Jiang Ye stood before the control screen and pressed and held the screen to power it on. Complex options immediately appeared on the screen.
[Anchor Species Selection:]
[Human] [Robot] [Animal] [Other]
Jiang Ye decisively selected Human, then chose [Ordinary Human], [Yellow Race], [Male].
Next came a series of appearance selections, similar to character creation in games. There were over thirty physical characteristics. Jiang Ye chose very common options and randomly sculpted a face. Finally, he selected clothing and voice. He chose a standard blue suit for clothing and a standard announcer's voice.
Click Generate!
[Generation successful. Saved automatically as "Li Hua."]
The projector on the ceiling rotated twice, casting a beam of light. A "Li Hua" suddenly appeared, standing in the center of the room with a standard smile. From head to toe, it was just like a real person! Jiang Ye walked over, leaned in for a closer look, and couldn't tell it was a projection even at close range. The stitches on the clothes and every strand of hair were clear. If filmed with a camera, it would be indistinguishable from reality!
This... do they still need to hire announcers? Wouldn't using virtual ones be fine?
Jiang Ye returned to the control screen. An option called [News Generator] had already appeared.
Clicking into it, [Please enter the news theme you wish to generate:]
Jiang Ye hesitated for a moment, then typed, "Jiang Ye Star Television Station Established." He set the news duration to "10 minutes" and confirmed!
The announcer Li Hua suddenly spoke, her standard announcer's voice echoing in the room:
"Recently, amidst widespread attention from all sectors of society, Jiang Ye Star Television Station has been established. The signal range of Jiang Ye Star Television Station covers 213 cities, with a population coverage of 50 million. Jiang Ye Star Television Station currently boasts nine radio programs, including News, Economy, Traffic, Arts and Culture, Lifestyle, Music, Tourism, Culture, and Science and Education, as well as Jiang Ye Star Satellite TV, Economic Life Channel, Urban Channel, Film and Television Drama Channel, Children's and Science Education Channel, Public Channel, and Shopping Channel..."
Jiang Ye was dumbfounded, staring at the virtual announcer who was broadcasting the news with a serious expression.
The content was all fabricated, but it actually sounded somewhat real.
"The equipment hasn't been connected to the supercomputer yet. Once connected, the generated news will be indistinguishable from real news," a staff member explained to Jiang Ye. "Currently, we are using the Tai Xu 12 News Generation Engine, which has reduced the error rate to one in a thousand. This means that in double-blind experiments, only one out of a thousand people can accurately distinguish between fake and real news."
"What's the use of this thing?" Jiang Ye was shocked. "Why would a television station have equipment to generate fake news? And generate it so realistically?"
The staff member's smile was awkward. "Of course, it's for... some complex purposes."
"Are such devices used on every planet?" Jiang Ye asked.
"Very few actually use them, but every television station must have a set of such equipment, just in case," the staff member said. "Once the equipment is debugged, the authority will be transferred to you. This means only you yourself can authorize the use of this equipment."
Jiang Ye nodded and said nothing more.
After touring more than half of the television station, Jiang Ye returned to the first-floor interview room.
A total of over ten thousand resumes had been received, covering all positions. However, Jiang Ye couldn't possibly interview everyone, nor did he have the time. His purpose for coming today was solely to select the station director. Once the station director and deputy director were decided, they would be responsible for selecting staff for the positions below.
There were only 20 candidates applying for the director position, and five of them had arrived early. As soon as Jiang Ye entered the interview room, the ten interviewees all stood up.
"Please be seated, everyone," Jiang Ye said, closing the door and taking a seat in the front row, crossing his legs with a smile. "We won't wait any longer. Let's begin the interview now."
The interviewees scrambled to take out their resumes from their bags.
"No need!" Jiang Ye said. "I remember all your names. You don't need to show me your resumes; I've already read them. I'm going to ask a few questions, and everyone will answer on the spot. Raise your hand to answer if you've thought it through. Those who answer well can stay, and those who answer poorly will have to leave."
All the interviewees looked serious. Two of them were trembling with nervousness. They had expected the interview to take another hour, but it had started early, catching them completely off guard.
"First question," Jiang Ye blinked. "Use an item to metaphorically describe a television station."
"A loudspeaker!"
"A broom!"
"A gun!"
"Happy fat-kid water!"
"Skincare products!"
The five interviewees answered consecutively, all looking at Jiang Ye with apprehension.
Jiang Ye nodded. "Those who answered 'Happy fat-kid water' and 'Skincare products,' please leave."
The two interviewees were stunned. They picked up their bags and, one after another, dejectedly pushed open the door and left.
"What's the meaning of this?"
"I don't know. Is it testing literary skills? Their three metaphors were also quite average!"
"The Grand General is too unreliable. What kind of question is this? I'm a graduate of a professional program!"
"Forget it, forget it. I also applied for the Program Director position. I'll go to the next one."
The two interviewees grumbled as they walked away down the corridor.