Chinese officials take on media challenges
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GT: Some of the messages are difficult to get across. How do you manage that?
El-Shahat: We like to talk of the "empty chair syndrome." In many cases with Western media the Chinese official view is not represented. Many Chinese officials are worried about being ambushed by the Western media.
I don't blame them. In China, foreign officials get a much better treatment from the Chinese media. Chinese culture is different, and they are welcoming. Chinese officials, on the other hand, face the China bias. But if you don't sit in the chair and participate in the discussion, somebody else will, and chances are that person doesn't really like you that much and won't represent your view.
But once you fill in that chair, you can build a full range of sophisticated weapons for taking control the situation.
Putting somebody in that chair is the hardest thing. I tell Chinese officials, "Don't be scared by the media, you can use it."
GT: Do you see some changes?
El-Shahat: Yes, and I commend the Chinese government for taking the initiative. I see more and more Chinese officials getting out. Just by turning up you score points.
The vast majority of the Western audience doesn't know much about China. They are waiting to be given the good news that is in China. When they see Chinese officials speak their own language, that's already a victory. The more you do it, the better you get at it. In a way it is the confidence that China needs. You sit down and have the confidence to tell people, "I'm Chinese, I'm just like you. I am all right." That's the big difference.
So you have somebody like the Dalai Lama for example. In the absence of a targeted Chinese message, he manages to get away with many untruths. A good Chinese message would unmask him. But if the message is not presented well enough, then it plays into his hands, and the West falls more in love with this guy.
He is very clever with his public image, and he manages it well. On Western media, you never see his real political and angry side.
Instead what you see is a carefully cultivated image of a gentle old priest talking about peace. So the West forgets that he is not only a king, but also a priest and a god all in one, something which people in the West would strongly object to. That's the kind of packaging China should match.
China has nothing to hide. Just use logic and don't be defensive. Being defensive, you lose an argument you should really win.
GT: Will China face more difficulties with its international image?
El-Shahat: As China grows, it will be increasingly seen as a threat by a world used to an old status quo where China doesn't really feature.
The more China speaks with a confident voice, the more it creates targeted messages, the more successfully it will fight the China bias. China deserves its rightful place in the world. The time for effective communication is now.
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