Experts urge media to report objectively
Experts urge media to report objectively
10:29, November 03, 2009 
Email | Print | Subscribe | Comments | Forum 
Media in China and Japan should accept their social responsibility and strengthen mutual communication to help build warm bilateral ties, experts said at a parallel session of the Fifth Beijing-Tokyo Forum in Dalian yesterday.
According to a recent poll, "more than 90 percent" of Chinese and Japanese acquire information about each other's countries through print, online and digital media.
"Media alone doesn't influence public opinion, but media does bear a heavy responsibility when it comes to communication between two countries. Many mutual misunderstandings could occur if media fails to report the facts objectively," said Ma Weigong, deputy editor-in-chief of China Radio International.
"Through the Beijing-Tokyo Forums in the past years, I have come to understand the Chinese media much better," said Masayuki Iida, a senior journalist at Japan's leading newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun.
"Of all the discussions we've had, there's one thing that no one from either side has disputed - our job is to report facts," he said.
"Objective journalism can play a major role in forming people's perception - an accurate perception - of a country or a situation," said Zhu Ling, editor-in-chief of China Daily.
"Take for example the Sichuan earthquake. As soon as word spread about the disaster, the Japanese government stepped up and offered aid and financial support. The Japanese media published stories of China's courage in the face of a natural catastrophe, while the Chinese media provided coverage of Japan's assistance, forming a healthy two-way interaction," he said.
Meanwhile, journalists from both sides agreed there should be more coverage of ordinary citizens to improve mutual understanding. "There should be more extraordinary stories about ordinary lives, issues that affect the common man," said Mitsuko Shimomura, a Japanese scribe.
Besides news, films, music, literature and tourism, too, are effective tools to strengthen mutual understanding and trust, said Iida.
"The two sides should expand opportunities for direct personal contact, especially interactive activities for the younger generation," Iida said.
The forum also analyzed the results of a survey jointly issued by China Daily and Japanese non-profit organization Genron NPO. Of those interviewed, 32.6 percent of Chinese residents and 45.3 percent of Chinese students said they had "very good" or "relatively good" general impressions of Japan, up more than two percent compared to last year. In Japan, 26.6 percent of residents had a "positive impression" of China, a 2.5 percent increase from last year.
The survey polled 1,589 Chinese residents in five major cities, and 1,008 students from five influential Chinese universities in June and July, while 1,000 residents and 500 intellectuals were interviewed in Japan.
Source:China Daily
According to a recent poll, "more than 90 percent" of Chinese and Japanese acquire information about each other's countries through print, online and digital media.
"Media alone doesn't influence public opinion, but media does bear a heavy responsibility when it comes to communication between two countries. Many mutual misunderstandings could occur if media fails to report the facts objectively," said Ma Weigong, deputy editor-in-chief of China Radio International.
"Through the Beijing-Tokyo Forums in the past years, I have come to understand the Chinese media much better," said Masayuki Iida, a senior journalist at Japan's leading newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun.
"Of all the discussions we've had, there's one thing that no one from either side has disputed - our job is to report facts," he said.
"Objective journalism can play a major role in forming people's perception - an accurate perception - of a country or a situation," said Zhu Ling, editor-in-chief of China Daily.
"Take for example the Sichuan earthquake. As soon as word spread about the disaster, the Japanese government stepped up and offered aid and financial support. The Japanese media published stories of China's courage in the face of a natural catastrophe, while the Chinese media provided coverage of Japan's assistance, forming a healthy two-way interaction," he said.
Meanwhile, journalists from both sides agreed there should be more coverage of ordinary citizens to improve mutual understanding. "There should be more extraordinary stories about ordinary lives, issues that affect the common man," said Mitsuko Shimomura, a Japanese scribe.
Besides news, films, music, literature and tourism, too, are effective tools to strengthen mutual understanding and trust, said Iida.
"The two sides should expand opportunities for direct personal contact, especially interactive activities for the younger generation," Iida said.
The forum also analyzed the results of a survey jointly issued by China Daily and Japanese non-profit organization Genron NPO. Of those interviewed, 32.6 percent of Chinese residents and 45.3 percent of Chinese students said they had "very good" or "relatively good" general impressions of Japan, up more than two percent compared to last year. In Japan, 26.6 percent of residents had a "positive impression" of China, a 2.5 percent increase from last year.
The survey polled 1,589 Chinese residents in five major cities, and 1,008 students from five influential Chinese universities in June and July, while 1,000 residents and 500 intellectuals were interviewed in Japan.
Source:China Daily
Related Reading
Special Coverage
60th anniversary of founding of PRC
Major headlines
Editor's Pick
Most Popular
Hot Forum Dicussion
