Telling China's stories well

In today's world, Telling China's stories well is a topic that generates a lot of interest and debate. For decades, Telling China's stories well has been the subject of studies and research in different fields, giving rise to a large amount of information and opinions on the matter. The importance of Telling China's stories well is reflected in its influence on society and its impact on our daily lives. Through this article, we propose to analyze and discuss different aspects related to Telling China's stories well, in order to provide a broad and enriching vision of this very relevant topic.

On November 19, 2021, the inaugural China Network Civilization Conference Online Content Building Forum took place in Beijing, centered on the theme of Telling China's Stories Well to Foster Network Civilization.

Telling China's stories well (Chinese: 讲好中国的故事; pinyin: Jiǎng hǎo Zhōngguó de gùshì) is a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) political slogan regarding its external propaganda efforts. It was proposed by CCP general secretary Xi Jinping in 2013.

History

Establishment

The slogan was first coined by CCP general secretary Xi Jinping on 19 August 2013, during a speech he gave to the 2013 National Conference on Publicity and Ideology Work (Chinese: 2013年全国宣传思想工作会议).[1] In February 2016, Xi gave a speech at a media symposium, where he said "we must tell the story of socialism with Chinese characteristics, the story of the Chinese dream, the story of the Chinese people, the story of China's excellent culture, and the story of China's peaceful development".[2] As part of Xi's efforts, numerous international communication centers have been established by provinces and municipalities.[3]

Development

Since January 2018, the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CAFFC) has undertaken a public diplomacy research project titled Telling China's stories, which gathered practices and experiences from the CAFFC network nationwide and selected 33 representative cases from a total of 117, categorizing them into three segments: culture, narratives, and romantic engagements, culminating in the compilation How to Tell China's Stories. It was published and distributed by the Commercial Press in April 2019.[4]

At the 2018 National Conference on Publicity and Ideology Work (Chinese: 2018年全国宣传思想工作会议)[5] in Beijing in August 2018,[6] Xi stated the importance of "telling China's stories well and disseminating a positive Chinese narrative."[7][8]

In September 2019, an official "Database of Telling China's Stories Well" was organized by Xinhua News Agency and undertaken by Chinaso.com of Xinhua.[9][10]

In May 2021, during the 30th collective study session of the 19th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party,[11] Xi Jinping emphasized "Telling China's stories, amplifying China's voice, and portraying an authentic, multidimensional, and comprehensive image of China as crucial endeavors in enhancing the nation's international communication capabilities."[12][13]

In November 2021, the inaugural China Internet Civilization Conference Online Content Construction Forum (Chinese: 中国网络文明大会网上内容建设论坛) took place in Beijing, co-organized by the Network Communication Bureau of the Cyberspace Administration of China and the China News Service,[14] with media representatives deliberating on strategies to advance the concept.[15] The 2023 China Internet Civilization Conference took place in Xiamen, Fujian Province, on July 18, 2023.[16] Li Shulei, the Minister of the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party, participated in and presented a keynote address to further advance China's narrative efforts.[17]

Definition

In an article written in the People's Daily in 2020, head of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the All-China Women's Federation Xu Shana described the meaning of telling China's stories well. She wrote "the core of telling 'China's story' is the "story of the Chinese Communist Party, and the crux of telling the story of the Chinese Communist Party well is properly explaining why the CCP 'can'." She continues by writing media should "clearly speak to why history and the people would choose the Chinese Communist Party, showing the political advantages of adhering to the leadership of the Party." She continues by describing the slogan as telling stories about "the struggle of the Chinese people to fulfil their dream", referring to Xi's concept of the Chinese Dream. She says the story of the "great struggle of the Chinese people" has appeal in other countries because it is about "a dream of peace, development, cooperation and win-win". She also emphasises using "China's excellent traditional culture", which she describes as "China's deepest source of cultural soft power", to spread China's image around the world. She concludes by writing that it is in the fundamental interests of the world to build a Community of Common Destiny. She says that to do this, Chinese media must "break through" the notion that "countries that strengthen must seek hegemony", which she associates with "China threat theory".[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "Telling China's Story Well". China Media Project. 2021-04-16. Archived from the original on 2022-08-28. Retrieved 2025-03-19.
  2. ^ "习近平关于"讲好中国故事"的五个论断" [Xi Jinping’s Five Conclusions on "Telling China’s Story Well"]. Global Vision (in Chinese). 23 April 2019. Archived from the original on 6 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2025.
  3. ^ Bandurski, David (2024-07-04). "China Starts Influence Ranking for Cities". China Media Project. Archived from the original on 2024-07-06. Retrieved 2024-12-22. China Daily is a critical and well-funded layer of the country's international communication array. It seems to be serving as a media partner for many newly-created ICCs, particularly at the city level, where there may be less media savvy, and fewer resources, to handle external communication.
  4. ^ "《如何讲好中国故事》出版 向世界展示精彩中国". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  5. ^ "从1到10，习近平对宣传思想工作提了这些新要求-新华网". Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 2018-08-25. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  6. ^ "学习贯彻习近平在全国宣传思想工作会议上重要讲话（2018年）". Chinese Communist Party (in Chinese). 2018-08-29. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  7. ^ "习近平出席全国宣传思想工作会议并发表重要讲话_滚动新闻_中国政府网". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  8. ^ "习近平出席全国宣传思想工作会议并发表重要讲话-新华网". Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 2018-08-22. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  9. ^ ""中国好故事"数据库上线 向世界展现真实立体全面的中国". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2024-04-09. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  10. ^ ""中国好故事"数据库上线 向世界展现真实立体全面的中国_图片新闻_中国政府网". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2024-04-03. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  11. ^ "习近平在中共中央政治局第三十次集体学习时强调 加强和改进国际传播工作 展示真实立体全面的中国-新华网". Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 2021-06-01. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  12. ^ "习近平：讲好中国故事，传播好中国声音". Qiushi (in Chinese). Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  13. ^ "习近平主持中共中央政治局第三十三次集体学习并发表重要讲话_滚动新闻_中国政府网". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  14. ^ "首届中国网络文明大会_新华网". Xinhua News Agency (in Chinese). 2021-11-19. Archived from the original on 2022-08-23. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  15. ^ "首届中国网络文明大会网上内容建设论坛举办_滚动新闻_中国政府网". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2023-05-26. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  16. ^ "国务院新闻办就2023年中国网络文明大会有关情况举行发布会__中国政府网". State Council of the People's Republic of China (in Chinese). 2023-07-03. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
  17. ^ "2023年中国网络文明大会网络内容建设论坛在厦门举行_中央网络安全和信息化委员会办公室". Cyberspace Administration of China (in Chinese). 2024-01-05. Retrieved 2025-03-20.