Social Media and National Development - Foundation Office China
Event Reports
New "social media" are causing challenges for global politics, society and individuals. Demands for participation and transparency are increasing.
The first part of the workshop discussed the changes in communication between governments, administrations and citizens.
Yan Yingfang, business consultant and former employee of the National Development and Reform Commission Shanghai, highlighted in his opening speech the importance of further opening up of social platforms and media in China. It is of particular importance for the government to use new media better and more effectively, as often only the headlines are read, leading to misunderstandings and rumours.
About the use of social media for NGOs and in particular for the group of Returned Overseas Chinese alluded Wendy MA, Secretary-General of SAI, and HUA Jierong, staff member of the Shanghai Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese. The difficulties of an appropriate communication strategy on the Internet and how to address English-language users were analyzed by QIU Guixi, Dean / Professor at the School of International Studies of KAS partner university Shanghai University of International Business and Economics (SUIBE). He used the example of the recent information policy about the Shanghai Free Trade Zone (SFZ).
Yannick Bury, political advisor at the European Parliament, introduced new forms of “e-participation” on the example of German municipalities and the German parties. He stressed that it is no longer just about to inform people, but also about participation in political decisions and processes. Negligent use of social platforms or the Internet by politicians could lead to a serious damage to their image. For this reason he recommended every politician should have a consultant specialized in Internet and Social Media.
Dr. Peter Hefele, Director Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Shanghai, discussed the questions of freedom of expression and its limits in the Internet. He also underlined the importance of better international communication, in order to build bridges between different nations and cultures.
The following discussion illuminated improvements and differences for Germany and China. It was pointed out that the communication channels between government authorities and citizens in China have to be improved.
The question of the role of social media in the foreign cultural policy and the social commitment were discussed in the second part of the workshop.
Dr. HU Chunchun, Institute for German Studies at Tongji University in Shanghai, showed the obstacles China is facing in its efforts to spread its cultural achievements in the world as part of its soft power approach. Despite its huge investment in building up cultural institutions, China is still facing a negative image abroad. The strategy to spread its values and ideas by attracting foreign audiences has to be reconsidered.
This led on to a debate about the role of social media in the foreign cultural policy and strategic communication with foreign countries and societies (public diplomacy).
Dr. Claus Heimes, Director, Culture and Education Section of the German Consulate General in Shanghai, presented the German foreign cultural policy, in which intermediary organizations, i.e. the Goethe-Institut, play an important role in promulgating a realistic image of contemporary Germany. He stressed that Germany's cultural diplomacy is based on the principle of equal and mutual exchange.
Thomas Rollet, Media and Press Counsellor at the Consulate of France in Shanghai, explained the understanding of French soft power. At the the example of the French Cultural Foreign Policy, he argued that the cultural and linguistic outreach of a nation has to be actively supported by the state, too. In this repsect, the use and communication through social media is a indisposable element of modern communication strategy.
In the closing discussion, Mrs. Dr. SHEN Qilan, Senior Consultant of Constellations International in Shanghai, emphasized the importance of culture as a dimension of social communication. An added value in bilateral cultural exchange should primarily achieved through jointly implemented arts projects in the sense of "collaboration " and "co-creation".
