China's expanding influence in Africa: projection,perception and prospects in Southern African countries

China's multi-faceted endeavour to expand its influence in Africa has attracted worldwide scholarly and media attention. This article examines the different moments of China's soft power endeavour, from projection through its state media to representation and lived experiences in South Africa and Zimbabwe, two African countries which receive a significant level of attention in China's policymaking. Through interdisciplinary methodologies such as content analysis, online questionnaires and in-depth interviews conducted in China, South Africa and Zimbabwe, the authors found that China's state-engineered soft power initiatives have resulted in partial success in the two countries. The conclusions indicate that China faces many challenges in fully accomplishing its intended goal. The findings provide new insight into China's political impact in Africa within the context of Beijing's growing influence on Africa's political and economic future.     

传媒外交：中国-东盟自由贸易区建设的媒体视角

传媒从诞生之日起，就与外交结下了不解之缘。2002年11月，中国与东盟国家领导人签署《全面经济合作框架协议》，决定于2010年建成中国-东盟自由贸易区（CAFTA）。建立准确的信息来源渠道，畅通信息流动机制，促进中国与东盟国家相互了解，推动双方关系不断积卡反发展，进而全面推动中国-东盟自由贸易区的建立是中国传媒责无旁贷的重大使命。     

“印太战略”:以美印日澳的战略逻辑、利益与策略选择为分析视角

"印太战略"是美国均势+有限遏制+规制+话语诋毁的混合型战略。它意在前沿、中间地带与后方的三层构建不对称的对华遏制性力量,突破中美双边、单区域战略竞争的狭窄战略空间;在多地域与多维度孤立中国,拉拢更多国家在产业价值链、数字经济等层面与中国切割;制订基础建设投资透明化的新标准,嵌入有利于美国利益的规制;通过国际法、舆论等软性手段抹黑中国的"一带一路"与海权发展。虽然共同逻辑都是制衡中国崛起,但日澳印在策略上强调非对抗性。其中避免成为中国优先反制是日本重要的策略目标;印度在拉达克边界冲突后尚没有形成一个完全倒向美国的战略,因为这必定使其背上沉重的战略包袱,成为美国的附庸;澳大利亚作为地缘政治影响有限的中等国家,在美国反华行动中冲在最前列已使其利益严重受损。而"印太战略"与东盟所推动的包容性、合作安全理念也有着本质的区别,东盟要在"印太地区"发挥中心领导作用,定位"印太"为对话与合作区域。所以由于东盟的抵制、印日澳的消极政策,这个战略形成的攻势将很难保持可持续性,其长期前景并不看好。     

中欧国家媒体的“中国观”:基于媒体报道的分析

本文通过对一段时期内中欧四国(捷克、波兰、匈牙利、斯洛伐克)部分主流媒体涉华报道的主要内容、对华评价、信息来源、议题设置以及对双边关系的态度等进行指标分析发现,当前中欧四国媒体的中国观非常复杂:政治和社会文化议题呈现出明显的负面态度;经济上兼具正负两方面态度;在中美矛盾冲突日益激烈背景下,中欧国家媒体并没有出现“站队美国”的倾向;在科技领域,承认中国在网络技术和数字经济领域的进步和领先地位。中欧国家媒体中国观的一个重要出发点是在发展对华关系中获得实际利益,中国的国际影响力对本国会产生何种作用。中欧国家媒体中国观的形成是其各自国家利益、历史经验、价值观、舆情民意等多种因素互动作用的结果。本文从“议程设置论”角度探讨了中欧媒体中国观的呈现方式以及中欧媒体中国观的代表性问题,即媒体是反映本国精英的中国观还是大众的中国观。     

The Clash in Public Opinion between Europe and China： What, How and Why

Recent years have seen a tension between Europe and China in public opinion, which began in 2006 and climaxed in 2008 when the Tibet riots and the Beijing Olympics put China under the global spotlight. Europeans and Chinese view each other more negatively than in ＂the good old days＂ and there is a growing perception gap regarding the Chinese government. The media （including the Internet） and public opinion leaders （scholars, human rights activists, dissidents, politicians and diplomats） have played a part in causing this both in Europe and in China, and this paper examines their roles. This paper also identifies three reasons behind the clash of viewpoints： First, lack of common values has exacerbated Europe＇s fear of a rising China; second, both Europe and China use this hostility to help redefine their self-identity; third, different development needs in China and Europe have nurtured very different mindsets. In the future, the European public＇s interest in China will continue to grow and Europe＇s and China＇s perceptions of each other will gradually stabilize. In the long run, whether Europe will accept a rising China depends on China＇s ability to develop a ＂Chinese thinking＂ which suits both China＇s and the world＇s development needs.     

中国在非洲的舆论环境及非洲媒体对中非关系发展的影响——以尼日利亚为例

尼日利亚是非洲的重要国家，传媒业较为发达，与世界各国媒体交流广泛。尼日利亚媒体涉华报道主流正面、积极、有利，为申尼、中非关系发展起到了重要作用。与此同时，尼媒体也出现了一些关于中国和申非关系消极、负面甚至不实的报道。对此，我应与尼媒体携手，采取综合措施，努力推动中尼媒体交流朝着高水平、深层次、多形式方向发展。     

新形势下新加坡《联合早报》媒介战略初探

随着新媒体的兴起,海外华文纸质传媒的生存发展面临巨大困难。新加坡《联合早报》作为纸质华文传媒的代表,采取了适应时代需求的媒介战略来应对困难。从文化定位、传媒视角的选择,到受众意识的加强;从多角化的经营模式,到大力宣传中国信息,科学合理的媒介战略使得《联合早报》成为21世纪华文传媒界的佼佼者。     

Is there a U.S.–China–India triangle? – Beijing’s official views

ABSTRACT

This research examines China’s official perspectives on, and interpretation of, U.S.-China-India relations by surveying official, quasi-official, and some most relevant scholarly publications. China’s official line has always emphasized the bilateral nature of the relationship between China and India fending off any third-party interference, including that from the United States. Neither Chinese leaders nor the regime’s official media outlets would speak of China–India relationship with a triangular framework (with a rare exception of the Russia–India–China triangle). In the context of the rapid evolvement of U.S.-India military cooperation, the Chinese official line remains unforthcoming about whether such developments have direct implication for China’s security or national interests. Chinese core official media has in fact minimized the popularization of the idea that containing China is the driving force behind any cooperation between India and the United States.     

30 years’ reform of China’s mass media

The article reviews the evolution of China’s mass media from their status as propaganda tools of the Communist Party to their current commercialized pluralist structure. It notably reviews the changes and rapid growth patterns of popular newspapers and TV programs and the concurrent restructuring of the media industry as well the impact of the Internet.     

中国在东南亚的软实力和中美关系

软实力在国家的对外关系中的作用越来越引起人们的重视。中国在东南亚的影响力的上升在美国的舆论界和学术界引起了警觉,认为中国要超越甚至排挤美国在该地区的影响。作者考察了中国在东南亚的实际影响,实事求是地分析了中国影响上升的原因,并指出了这种影响的局限性。最后呼吁,为了本地区的和平、稳定与繁荣,中美两国应该和平共处,合作共赢,良性竞争。     

Russia's African Toolkit: Digital Influence and Entrepreneurs of Influence

Today, Russian influence on the African continent is still anecdotic compared to the People's Republic of China, the United States, and former colonial powers, such as France. Yet, Moscow has committed to reasserting itself as an alternative pole of influence to China and Western countries in the eyes of some African elites. This article analyzes two key components of Russia's African toolkit: its media outlets such as RT and Sputnik, which have managed to impose themselves on the African media landscape, and its entrepreneurs of influence, in charge of influence campaigns of different scopes. The article contends that Russia's media success relies more on the appropriation of its informational content by African actors with their own political agendas than on Moscow convincing African audiences of the legitimacy of its foreign policy or political model, and that entrepreneurs of influence may play a useful, but limited, role in testing new parameters of influence.     

Terrorism and the media: Problems,solutions, and counterproblems

This article is divided into two main parts. The first part frames the problem of “terrorism and the media” in terms of a complex interaction involving three kinds of relationships. The first is the relationship between terrorists and governments; the second is the relationship between terrorists and the media; and the third is the relationship between government and the media. The second part examines the specific roles of the media in covering terrorism and the impact of such coverage. Four kinds of solutions to the problems deriving from this impact are examined in turn: the use of media guidelines, the use of legislation and legal sanctions, media‐government cooperation, and training and education. Finally, the practicality of these solutions is examined by highlighting the kinds of problems or “counterproblems” that are inherent in each solution.     

The Chinese problem as seen by the WEU

Europe has been the privileged economic and political partner of Africa, but more recently China has increased its foothold in Africa through important financial investments and trade agreements. Against this backdrop, the empirical research conducted in 2007-08 in Kenya and South Africa as part of a pioneering international project investigates the perceptions of public opinion, political leaders, civil society activists and media operators. While confirming their continent's traditional proximity to Europe, African citizens are increasingly interested in China and its impact on Africa's development. Europe is criticised for not having been able to dismiss the traditionally ‘patronising’ attitude towards Africa. While African civil society leaders and media operators describe China as an opportunity for Africa to break free of its historical dependence on European markets, other opinion leaders warn against too much enthusiasm for the Asian giant. There is a suspicion that the Chinese strategy might, in the long run, turn into a new form of economic patronage.     

印度的“大国梦”与中国形象的媒体呈现——以《印度斯坦时报》涉华报道为例

中国在印度的大国诉求战略中扮演着非常重要又极为复杂的角色。那么印度媒体是如何在印度大国梦的框架中审视中国并呈现中国形象的？论文对印度的重要英文报《印度斯坦时报》的内容进行了分析，发现印度媒体既承认中国的发展现实，又担心中国崛起的国际影响，对中国的认知也受到了西方大国的影响。因此文章提出了向印度释放合作共赢信号，努力构建世界体系转型期的集体身份的建议，以跨越所谓的“安全困境”。     

Individual Motivations,Perceived Media Importance,and Political Disaffection

Mass media have been blamed for distancing people from the political process by increasing cynicism and voter apathy. A telephone survey of 592 registered voters in Washington state tested a set of relationships among political involvement, perceived media importance, political disaffection, and efficacy. As hypothesized, political involvement was positively associated with the perceived importance of newspapers and radio talk shows. These, in turn, were negatively associated with cynicism and positively associated with efficacy. Cynicism was negatively associated with efficacy, while efficacy was positively associated with involvement. The results suggest that involvement is a key variable in the political decision making process through its relationships with orientations toward information sources. Thus, media can serve as a catalyst for involved citizen decision making. Scholars should attend to the motivational context individuals bring to the media when examining the role of the media in political decision making.     

My Country,My Country,directed by Laura Poitras,produced by Jocelyn Glatzer and Laura Poitras Iraq in Fragments,directed by James Longley,produced by John Sinno and James Longley

A new form of “entertaining news,” accessed by most through television, has become a privileged domain of politics for the first time in countries “beyond the West” in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. What are the political consequences of this development: What is the relationship between media and politics in these regions? We answer these questions through a case study of India, the world's largest democracy, where two decades of media expansion and liberalization have yielded the largest number of commercial television news outlets in the world. We show why prevailing theories of media privatization and commercialization cannot account for the distinctive architecture of media systems in places like India. In this article, we first provide an overview of the historical and contemporary dynamics of media liberalization in India and the challenges that this poses to existing models and typologies of the media-politics relationship. We then present a new typology of media systems and a theoretical framework for studying the relationship between television news and democratic politics in India, and by extension in the global South. In the concluding section, we reflect on the broader comparative insights of the essay and discuss directions for future research. We believe that our alternative comparative framework captures more meaningfully the diversity and complexity of emerging media systems and their relationships to democratic practice in these regions.     

泰国高层对南海争端的看法

泰国本身并非南海主权申索国,但试图在南海问题上扮演协调者的角色。泰国官方对南海争端给予极高的关注度。本文试从泰国主流媒体近两年所刊载的泰国官方对南海争端的表态,尤其是总理和各部首脑的发言,对泰国政府在南海争端中的基本立场进行分析解读。     

What Does China''s Changes Mean to the World?

Although the severe snowstorms that hit Southern China in January and big earthquake in Sichuan in May uncovered a number of weaknesses, they could not conceal the rising power's historical achievements over the past three decades. The reform and opening-up policies have benefited China considerably. The international media, attracted by the Beijing Olympics, will focus on these miraculous changes and the outside world will gain a deeper understanding of China. No matter what anyone says, there will be a new and general recognition of China's rise and the increasing interdependence between China and the world outside.     

Terrorism,violence against the public,and the media: The Australian approach

This paper examines the balance between the apparently competing objectives of government and the media in the general area of violence against the public and details the Australian model for handling issues associated with terrorism and the media. Australia's counterterrorism strategy may be considered holistic, going beyond the idea of a comprehensive capability for response to an actual public incident to include preventive measures and enhancement of the national security environment, suggesting that all elements of the society, including the media, regard security as a cooperative endeavor. These elements have been developed in the “National Anti‐Terrorist Plan” (NATP), developed by Australia's Standing Advisory Committee on Commonwealth/State Cooperation for Prevention against Violence (SAC‐PAV). For the past several years, the SAC‐PAV has been developing a basic strategic guide to provide structure for its many activities, and the committee has agreed that the NATP requires a fourfold strategy for dealing with the media: (1) public communication policies and guidelines, (2) incorporating media response and incident management strategies, (3) media training, and (4) physical controls. In addition, the SAC‐PAV has formulated a set of guidelines for the media to apply when covering terrorist incidents, indicating clearly what crisis managers and counterterrorism response organizations expect of media handling of public crises.     

Regulatory changes in China against evolving media freedoms

Scholars and commentators who argued that the “forth generation” of Chinese leadership under Hu Jintao would allow greater press freedom have been proved wrong repeatedly. There is no freedom of the press in China. Reports of the heavy-handed tactics used by the government to keep the media under control are as unsettling as they are common. China remains a difficult and dangerous place in which to operate as a journalist. Despite the country’s rapid economic modernization this fact has not changed, nor can it be expected to under the current leadership. The truth of this has been made abundantly clear by the sweeping regulatory changes introduced over the past nine months that seek to cement government control over the entire media sector by banishing private and foreign influence and striking out once again at the Internet.