Programs dedicated to traditional culture have huge viewer appeal. [Photo provided to China Daily]

As tens of millions marvel at a 16-year-old's prowess with verse, questions are raised about where country is getting it wrong in teaching culture

Soon after the program Rendezvous With Chinese Poetry returned to television screens two months ago, it was pulling in the kinds of audiences that you would normally only associate with a top-notch reality TV show.

Indeed, after its 10-episode run during the Spring Festival period, the China Central Television show's producers were able to boast that it had attracted an aggregate of more than 1.2 billion viewers.

Those figures are all the more astonishing given the program's very modest aims: to encourage the public "to appreciate classic Chinese poetry, look to their cultural roots and enjoy the beauty of life".

It had aired for the first time a year earlier, and no sooner had it returned than it seemed almost everyone in the country was talking about the program, which invites poetry lovers to vie with each other to see who knows the most about classic Chinese poetry.

By the end of the series, messages about it on Sina Weibo, a Chinese version of Twitter, had been read more than 90 million times, and videos from the program had received nearly 6 million clicks online, CCTV said.

Helping drive the program's popularity was Wu Yishu, 16, a high school student from Shanghai who made her way to the finals, and in doing so captivated millions with knowledge of classic Chinese poetry that she combined with calmness, elegance and a razor-sharp mind.

Eventually Wu would be the outright winner, beating dozens of rivals of various age groups, including her ultimate opponent, a poetry magazine editor.

"The program has enhanced our appreciation of the beauty of classic poetry and traditional culture," says Beijing's Wen Chen, 30, adding that many of his entourage were as enamored of the program as he was.