洞察力

Historically, the endeavors of reshaping global communication are characterized by the following landmark events: the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) debate, spanning the 1970s and early 1980s, known as “New World Information and Communication Order” (NWICO), and the more recent International Telecommunications Union (ITU) sponsored negotiations at the “World Summit on Information Society” (WSIS), with the Phase I held in Geneva, 2003 and Phase II in Tunis, 2005. ... >>

As slogans go, the ‘Chinese Dream’ is a call-to-arms, urging Chinese nationals, including indigenous minorities, to collectively imagine a great future. While this mantra is directed at what media scholar Benedict Anderson once referred to as an ‘imagined community’, it is clear that the Chinese national community is fragmented, both within the nation state itself and dispersed across many nations. ... >>

The cover photo of the "Routledge Handbook of Chinese Media" shows two young people who look Chinese sitting in what appears to be an underground train. Their geographical location is difficult to ascertain as it may be Hong Kong, Shanghai, Taipei or London. The girl seems absorbed in her smart phone and the boy next to her is focused on his tablet. They may be reading the news, updating their Facebook status, downloading music, finding a restaurant for dinner, chatting online or playing games. This image captures instantly the transforming landscape of Chinese media and communications in the 21st century: A 24/7 information environment defined by the convergence of platforms, multiple methods of vertical and horizontal communications, and the overwhelming sense that one can never be out of contact with friends or out of touch with the world. ... >>

Visiting Beijing in the summer of 2013, I met a colleague working for a Chinese daily. He seemed a little frustrated when we talked about our work. And he had good reason for this: Just the other day, he told me, one of his stories on the coal industry had been censored. In an article he was not allowed to quote an environmental NGO on the subject, because that NGO had been put on a “black list” by the Ministry of Propaganda. Even though – or maybe because – the NGO had done some extensive research on the topic and was providing some very interesting facts and opinions. ... >>

For decades we have been hearing the same complaints about Africa’s image in the German media. Always the same lament: stereotype-laden reporting, scenarios dripping with pathos, a Eurocentric point of view, and a distorting focus on wars, crises, and catastrophes. But does Africa’s image even need to change? ... >>

China’s media engagement in Africa is not new. Already during the cold war, radio transmitters and content from Radio Peking was part of China’s gestures of solidarity with newly established African states. Solidarity in anti-colonial struggle is one way to look at this media expansion. Another was as Chinese propaganda. Either way, it reflected China’s ambition to lead the non-aligned countries, especially after the Bandung Conference of 1955. ... >>

China’s economic rise of the last almost 35 years has been spectacular. This rise has far reaching consequences, not only economically, but politically, too. China is a country that is admired for its success; but it is also feared for its growing power, especially by its neighboring countries. People respect China; but do they like it? ... >>