/ The focus of this study is the perceived influence of TV `anchors' (presenters) on Chinese television in the past 10 years or so, including the approaches and/or various institutional guidelines and disciplinary measures imposed by government departments and media institutions. Through the case of China Central Television (CCTV) and based on a theoretical framework that draws on the discourse of `news culture', the study explores the different types of `anchored' media presented in the genres of news and current affairs, and tracks the rise of four of China's most popular anchors in these genres. Using a combination of discourse, visual and policy analysis, this article illustrates how the popularity of high-profile anchor people in China since the mid-1990s has created a new type of influence, one not without its limitations but which may also contribute to a `public sphere' with Chinese characteristics.