Microblogs gaining political weight
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A Global Times survey shows that 71 percent of Chinese Web users attribute their growing interest in politics to microblogging, but more than half of them complained about the lack of interaction on government blogs.
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There are more than 1,300 government blogs on its servers, among which 692 are for public security services, 216 are operated by government bodies and 426 belong to individual politicians. |
The poll was conducted by the Global Poll Center under the newspaper from March 25 to April 5. It surveyed 1,285 people, including some living in Hong Kong and Taiwan, either online or by phone.
Among the respondents, 59.3 percent said they have become more inclined to express their political views on microblogs. In terms of their favorite topics, 36.6 percent of them cited social news, followed by 23.1 percent choosing politics and 19.6 percent going for daily-life topics, such as fashion and heath.
The poll also found that male bloggers voice their political opinions more often than their female counterparts, and in terms of age, middle-aged Web users were most active on political topics.
Microblogging flourished in China in 2010, as President Hu Jintao registered his own microblog in February that year and gained more than 8,000 followers hours after opening.
After that, more and more politicians and government organs began accepting and using the new media.
According to sina.com.cn, a major microblogging provider in China, there are more than 1,300 government blogs on its servers, among which 692 are for public security services, 216 are operated by government bodies and 426 belong to individual politicians.
During the annual national parliamentary sessions last month, officials and journalists were encouraged to use microblogs to quickly disclose information on the gatherings.
Although 72.1 percent of those polled backed the idea of politicians opening microblogs, 65.6 percent of the voters complained that most current government blogs are merely publicity stunts without timely responses to inquiries.
Liu Xiaoying, a professor specializing in international communications at the Communications University of China, urged officials to keep an eye on their blogs, saying that new media could become a force to be reckoned with.
"If politicians fail to address netizens' concerns in a timely manner on their blogs, they may lose public trust and may provide fuel for false rumors that could mislead the people," Liu told the Global Times, adding that relevant departments should also enhance regulations on microblogging.
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