Spokespersons get a dose of western journalism
By Han Lei (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2004-06-09 16:09

Chinese government spokespersons got a rare opportunity to look into foreign journalists' minds when they would be confronted with tough questions in the days ahead.

Jim Miller, President of the Producers International Media Inc, talks to Chinese spokespersons. [newsphoto]

On Wednesday, some 40 Chinese spokespersons from the State Council's various departments and some provincial governments, chased three experienced reporters from the United States with all kinds of harsh questions, at a workshop held in Beijing. The State Council's Information Office is the sponsor.

Tom Montier, a senior foreign correspondent who once worked with the American Cable News Network (CNN ), urged the Chinese spokespersons to be always at the learning lane, to be composed, and "get ready" when the unexpected thing breaks.

"Always telling the truth" is the guideline for any spokesperson, but the tricky part is "do not tell the whole truth", Montier said, dangling the old Western "onion" journalistic theory.

"A professional spokesperson should have the ability to control the circus", referring to a lousy press briefing correspondents' squad, echoed John Lewis. He added that the spokespersons must make up their minds on what kind of message would be sent out.

"If different government departments send out different messages on the same event, journalists will get confused," said Lewis, who is now working with the Producers International Media Inc. and had been working for CNN in Asia bureaus for more than 20 years.

Meanwhile, Jim Miller, President of the Producers International Media Inc, suggested that Chinese spokespersons give "simple, clear, to-the-point answers". Any hesitation from his or her appearance will add to journalists curiosity and more harsh or even twisted questions.

"If you want to send out some message, you should stick to the points. When the message is too broad, and your narration is too long, it just undermines your points," said Miller, once an Emmy Awards winner in the United States. Also, keeping good communication and building a relationship with the journalists are important to the success of government spokespersons, he said.

The spokespersons' workshop, sponsored by the State Council's Information Office (SCIO), has aroused wide attention and interests among Chinese spokespersons and western journalists. The SCIO has held three workshops since last September, which trained nearly 200 spokesmen and information officers from central departments and provincial governments.

Wang Hui, director of the Beijing Municipal Government's Information Office, said that sometimes cultural differences hinder the spread of information from Chinese spokespersons to foreign journalists.

Chinese spokespersons tend to give a whole picture of an event, while the foreign journalists are more interested in the major points, added Wang.

"It is the first time I am invited by the Chinese government to take part in this kind of programs. It is certainly an improvement. I am encouraged by the exchanges," Tom Montier said.

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