SUMMIT

Third, efforts need to be made to guide public senment. The correct coverage of the
media can help allay public fears, rally social resources, and effecvely tackle crises. While
providing informaon through the main channels, media organisaons should parcularly
pay aenon to the spread of rumors and “hearsays”, put the scope and channels of
rumor spread under control and undo the damages they have inflicted.
Fourth, the media needs to make utmost efforts to affect the decision making of the
government and the implementaon of such decisions. Media organisaons need to
provide mely reports to the government on the development of the crisis and the
psychological state of the public and help the government make scienfic decisions. Once
the decisions are published, media organisaons also have the obligaon to publicize such
decisions for the government so as to set the stage for the following implementaon of
the decisions.
Last but not least, the media also needs to help the government form a posive image.
The mely media coverage of the steps taken by the government to handle crisis and the
effects of such measures plays a crucial role in shaping the image of the government.
In early 2008, many provinces and cies in southern China were devastated by a serious
snow storm; on 12 May, a strong earthquake measuring 8.0 Richter scale struck China’s
Wenchuan County and the post-disaster rescue and reconstrucon are sll underway. In
the wake of the two crises, China’s mainstream media represented by CCTV immediately
passed on the latest development of the disaster to the public in an accurate, mely,
comprehensive and transparent manner and provided prompt coverage on the
government’s disaster relief efforts. In the aermath of the earthquake, the live coverage
of CCTV became the primary source of informaon for the general public, the government
and domesc and foreign media organisaons. For example, most of the viewers received
the latest developments of the disaster from the live footage of CCTV; CCTV live news
programmes were aired in the disaster relief headquarters in the affected areas; CNN,
ABC, BBC, NHK and many other world-renowned media organisaons also relayed CCTV’s
reports. Many famous overseas media organisaons even placed CCTV’s prompt, accurate
and transparent coverage of the earthquake on a par with the disaster relief efforts of the
Chinese Government.
It fully shows that in the wake of crisis, as long as we can fully acvate the “environment
monitoring” funcon of the media, reach the crisis scene immediately, gather informaon
from all sources and set an effecve media agenda, we will be able to put media agenda,
government agenda and public agenda under the same umbrella. It also demonstrates
that in conngent incidents, only by acng in the public interests in our reporng can we
achieve the opmal results we wish to deliver through our media agenda.
Globalisaon is now gathering momentum economically, culturally and in many other
fields as well. However, the globalisaon of informaon disseminaon is the driving force
behind all these changes.
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