I recently heard from a friend in China in response to my blog entry (March 28, 2008) about perceptions of misrepresentation of Chinese events by Western media. I found his remarks fascinating and a good reminder that we have to understand each other (interpersonally, internationally and intergalactically) in order to avoid misunderstandings. Attributing intentionality and meaning is risky business if you can't look from the other side. Talking about the incident in which CNN commentator Jack Cafferty made some (what I consider to be) irresponsible remarks about China in the wake of the Olympic torch protests, my friend Michael writes: I met with a Canadian friend on Sunday in Chengdu, who is a professor working with the National Film Board, and we exchanged opinions on the recent Cafferty issue. I said that the Chinese and Western people have very different understandings on the role of media and their relationship with the government. While the Western people tend to think that … [Read more...]
Western Media from a Chinese Point of View
Mass media helps make a nation real and tangible through depictions of images, symbols, and events. Information from within China, which had been cut off during the Mao regime from 1949-1976, is more open but still subject to government censorship. Without adequate or accurate sources, western media creates and disperses images of China based on journalistic interpretations of out-dated stereotypes and some outright errors. Confounding objective representation is the fact that China is geographically distant and diametrically different from the United States in her culture, language, history, politics and economics and nearly every frame of reference that might facilitate Western understanding. The physical and cultural distance, combined with the current political climate, makes China an easy target for stereotyping and “othering” in news and political rhetoric. Stone and Xiao (2007) show that since the break-up of the Soviet Union, the American popular press has focused on … [Read more...]
