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"we don't cause trouble, but we are not afraid of it either," "it's easy to shake a mountain, but it's hard to shake the people's liberation army," "aircraft carriers are not homebodies"... in recent years, many spokespersons of state and local governments have "gained fans" with their speeches. spokespersons face the media and the people, with the party and the government behind them. they are both "windows" and "bridges." their speeches are often authoritative sources of information and synonymous with "truth," and they attract much attention.

for example, since its official establishment in 1983, china's press spokesperson system has been around for more than 40 years. the "decision" of the third plenary session of the 20th cpc central committee proposed to "improve the press spokesperson system". what kind of changes has china's press spokesperson system undergone over the past 40 years? on the new journey, how can the press spokesperson system keep moving forward and reach the "next stop"?

image source: visual china

one

looking back, my country's news release business has been accompanied by great times and major events. for example, in major political occasions, news releases "add bricks and tiles": the day after the closing of the third plenary session of the 20th cpc central committee, a press conference of the cpc central committee was held; in many international diplomatic occasions, there are press conferences and media briefings. for example, in the face of major crises, news releases "provide timely assistance": during the wenchuan earthquake and the epidemic, news releases responded to concerns and gathered people's hearts. for example, telling the chinese story well, news releases "add icing on the cake": during the beijing winter olympics and the hangzhou asian games, hot topics that were quite popular online frequently went viral.

however, we should also see that there are still some unsatisfactory aspects in the developing news release work.

for example, the spokesperson’s “power and responsibilities are misplaced.”although some places have set up the position of press spokesperson and announced a list of spokespersons, they rarely have the opportunity to take the stage, and the spokespersons have become "invisible people" and "prop people"; at certain critical moments, although the press spokespersons stand up, they become "shields" and "scapegoats" due to poor handling of offline events, or because the coordinated support mechanism for news releases is not in place, the press spokespersons can only fight alone and are unable to effectively respond to concerns.

for example, equating press releases with job postings.some news releases "report good news but not bad news", talk about achievements in a logical way, but cover up problems. especially in news releases that touch the interests of the general public and urgently need a positive response, some "insignificant" and "bypassing" releases cause psychological resistance or even disgust among the audience. others turn press conferences into internal work meetings, or sit on the stage "without saying a word", or say "let's talk behind closed doors today" and "please don't report what i just said" and other "shocking" remarks.

for example, it is either difficult to "stand out" or it is easy to "go wrong".at some press conferences, the press conference speakers on stage just go through the motions with official jargon, and the reporters off stage just copy and paste what they say. the press conferences are just empty shells because they can’t talk about the key points on stage, can’t ask substantive questions on site, and can’t get to the core of the news. some even release the news improperly, “turn over” on site, and “slap in the face” afterwards, which leads to more and more doubts about the news, and the press conferences become “second scenes” and “news beyond news”. for example, in a major explosion accident in a certain place, the spokespersons frequently panicked about their abilities, saying “i’m not clear”, “i don’t know”, and “i don’t have a grasp of it”. not only did they fail to calm the public’s emotions, but they made things worse and triggered secondary public opinion.

image source: visual china

two

being at the forefront of the times and on the crest of public opinion, news release work faces challenges everywhere. “how far you can see determines how far you can go”, which requires us to have a better understanding of news release. in my opinion, the following points are more critical.

press releases are about mission responsibility.as a political institutional arrangement, news release is a standard feature of the national governance system. from national to local policies and regulations, there are clear requirements on when to release, what to release, and how to release. therefore, it is not "release when you want to release, and don't release when you don't want to release". news release is a mission and responsibility.

internationally, press releases are also a common practice. the united nations and foreign ministries of various countries release information, express opinions, and explain their positions through regular press conferences. as one of the symbols of modern political civilization, press conferences are a direct reflection of the openness and transparency of government affairs, and are also authoritative official voices and news sources.

news releases are about words and people’s hearts.after the era of "lead and fire" and "light and electricity", we have entered the era of "numbers and networks" in the all-media era. the public opinion ecology, media structure, and communication methods have undergone subversive and revolutionary changes. in the communication pattern of "everyone has a microphone", news release has become a concept and a capability. party committees and governments at all levels must develop the ability to "swim in the ocean of information", bravely compete for the hearts and minds of the people, compete for traffic, and seize the right to speak in the public opinion field, and win the trust and sense of security of the public with the authority and certainty of news releases.

news releases are about governance effectiveness.news release is a kind of systematic communication. in terms of mode, it integrates various types such as interpersonal communication, organizational communication, and mass communication; in terms of audience, it covers multiple target groups such as "toa" (targeting the general public), "tob" (targeting organizations), and "toc" (targeting individuals); in terms of timeliness, new government media can be available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. it can be said that news releases allow information to reach everyone fairly, which has become a broad consensus and common expectation. in addition, behind the language is action. news releases cannot be superficial or empty talk. we must adhere to the concept of "if you want to deal with public opinion, you must first do things well" to further improve the effectiveness of social governance.

finally, the spokesperson is both an "institutional person" and a "natural person."the spokesperson is authorized by the organization and has a working team to support him. his every word and action represents the image of the party and the government. at the same time, the spokesperson is also a flesh-and-blood individual. a mature spokesperson has ideas, attitudes, and responsibilities. he is in tune with the public and treats them with his heart. this is also the "soul" of the spokesperson system.

image source: xinhua news agency wechat official account

three

an important principle for further deepening reform is to "stick to institutional construction as the main line". improving the press spokesperson system requires a higher level of vision and further actions. in this regard, the author has three words.

the system is "internalized" and takes root.for a tree to flourish and survive the wind and rain, it must keep taking root. for the press spokesperson system to be stable and long-term, it also needs to be truly embedded in the national governance system. it cannot be "important in words, secondary in practice, and unnecessary when busy", it cannot be set up but not used, or be a "showpiece", nor can it be "played alone and fought alone".

some places do not pay enough attention to the press spokesperson and news release system, and have not truly embedded it in the governance system. when emergencies occur, some places lack authoritative voices, some places selectively release news, and even use certain means to "clean up" negative public opinion. these practices are not conducive to communicating public opinion, but instead cause rumors to fly everywhere and cause public panic. this requires focusing on the overall situation, strengthening the coupling and integration of the system with a systematic concept, and promoting the mutual empowerment and common growth of the press spokesperson system and the openness of party affairs and government affairs.

the playing style continues to upgrade.after more than 40 years of development, china's news publishing industry has accumulated a lot of experience and practices. however, in the era of huge information waves and the omni-media communication ecosystem, the only way to innovate and work hard is to "keep doing new things". in addition to using diversified communication methods to make more people "hear", we also need to actively change the tone of speech so that everyone is "willing to listen".

for example, on the basis of ensuring timeliness and accuracy, we can add a youthful and communicative feel to news releases, and give full play to the personal style of the spokesperson, making news releases more vivid and approachable, or being eloquent, or being concise, or being humorous and friendly, or being sharp. like the spokespersons of the ministry of foreign affairs, sometimes they are sharp-tongued, sometimes they are witty, and many netizens exclaimed, "so you are this kind of ministry of foreign affairs."

make up for the shortcomings and weaknesses.there are still some imbalances in news release work, such as the system incentive link is prone to "it is right to release if it is right, and there will be a price to pay if it is wrong" and "it is better to keep silent and keep safe than to release and take risks". in this regard, the responsibilities of the spokespersons should be clarified, and the sense of mission and honor should be enhanced to promote responsible voice; we should also actively create a fault-tolerant environment so that they can speak with confidence. for example, the county level often faces the "baking" test of emergencies, but often lacks media resources and insufficient news release capabilities. in response to these problems, we also need to overcome shortcomings.

publishing is never a trivial matter. since ancient times, my country has emphasized that "speech is the voice of the heart" and "words must be practiced". some scholars have pointed out that confucianists of all ages have developed a set of speech norms centered on "benevolence", namely "must be good at speaking, words and deeds must be consistent, words must be sincere, and words must be spoken to preserve one's nature". inheriting the fine traditions and living up to the trust of the people, china's press spokesperson system has always been on the road to perfection.