Rewards and Challenges for International Media Organizations Operating in China - Research Paper Example

Media and Communication Research Question What are the main rewards and challenges for international media organizations operating in China? Discuss with reference to actual examples (E.g.: News Corporation, Time Warner, or MTV). Introduction Presently, China is the second largest economy of the world and it has an annual growth rate of around 10 percent. This simply means that china is going to emerge as one of the world’s most powerful countries in the coming years. The most widely spoken language in China is Mandarin, which also the world’s most widely spoken language. China is the world’s most populated country and its population is capable to support its enormous economy. The manufacturing industry is the major industry of China, which attracts and calls for huge amount of foreign investment. China is indubitably a vibrant, dynamic, and versatile economy of the contemporary world with a fast and sustained rate of economic growth. In such a state of affair, China emerges as a potential market for the international media organizations too. There is huge scope of investment in the media and communication sector of the country. But it is very strict with foreign culture and not ready to accept the influx of foreign media rapidly. China has extensive political control over its media and communication sector and it is not so open with the western organizations. In such circumstances, the western organizations are most likely to accept the country’s rules and regulations so that they can exploit its huge market. As has been pointed out by P. Scannell, mass communication is intricately related with the mass culture. The culture of a country decides the very processes of communication related technologies (Scannell, 2007). Communication can stand out as an ideology, but in a country like China its publicness cannot be assured. In fact, according to C. Gifford, communication has “developed from drums and smoke signals through the invention of printing, to the Internet and virtual reality” (Gifford, 2000). Needless to say, the process of evolution of a media communication system is multifaceted and China is no exception. However, if the tensions between China and Japan are eased, coherent activities of the media companies of China, Korea, and Japan can make this part of the world an alternative center of international media and news flow. So the main challenge is to cross the historical and political hurdles and ensure a unified and rapidly growing media market in this region. Rewards The rewards of entering the cultural sector of China are numerous. A survey by SARFT has shown that by the year 2001, 1.195 billion people in China used television and 57.5% of the households had cable connection. This shows that there is a huge market to be explored in television media. By the year 2001, eight state owned radio, television, and film groups were being run. China Radio, Film and Television Group (CRFTG) was established in the same year. This made the state control forceful, but still increased the scope of international media. Literacy rate in China was 89.9% among males and 72.7% among females (1995 estimates), which again testifies the intellectual demand of the population. According to 2001 estimates, only 10 percent of the population was below the poverty line. Number of telephone main lines in use was 135 million (2000 estimates) and number of mobile/cellular connections was 65 million (2001 estimates). As early as 1998, several radio broadcasting stations were there. Among them, the number of AM stations was 369 and that of FM stations was 259. There were 417 million radio sets in China in 1997. Currently in China, 223 million people are online, and the number of Internet users is growing by 4 million per month. So the statistics show that the Chinese market is vibrant and there is ample scope for a productive media and entertainment industry. A considerable portion of the huge population is literate, which means that the gross demand for quality entertainment is high. More TV channels and foreign programs are necessary to meet the public demand. Moreover, the country offers a skilled labor force and cheap labor as well. Altogether, the market is productive and broadcasting in multiple languages can be profitable. The main languages are Mandarin, Yue, Wu, Minbei, Minnan, Xiang, Gan, etc. and regional dialects also vary from place to place. Contextually, according to Y. Zhu, the Chinese television media system is threefold. There are the global players like News Corporation, Time Warner, etc. The regional players are like the Phoenix TV Regional Broadcasting. And the powerful national players are there like CCTV, HK-TVB, etc (Zhu, 2009). So it can be concluded that the television industry is commercially mature and the markets are ready to accept new ventures. According to A. A. Berger, the problem of certainty is a major issue when it comes to media and communication research. Overt and covert oppositions exist and it is difficult to arrive at an ideal factual analysis almost in all environments. In this context, Marxist and Feminist criticisms of media and communication are relevant. Free media is in parallel lines with Mannheim’s ideology although the ideal freedom has not been achieved (Berger, 2000). In his book Media Communication: An Introduction to Theory and Process, J. w has thrown light on several important issues and aspects. Utilization of media that we make in the modern world is multifarious, but not ideal always. Identifying the complex attributes of audience reaction to the media is crucial. The uses of media further depend on gratifications theory. When a program or feature is in accordance with the public demand, the media is gratified with respect to the public. This in turn intensifies the problem of certainty. Issues of dependency are also preponderant from time to time. However, in modern days, emancipatory utilization of media cannot be undermined. In such circumstances, media would act parallel to the democratic processes and strengthen them. The cultivation theory supports this idea where media helps in shaping the public opinion. In this context, we may conclude that media has a power to challenge the authority. However, resistive audience can damage this role of media and make the situation complicated. Also, in order to study media responses in a given geographical region, ethnographic perspectives should be considered along with corporate intrusion (Watson, 1998). The above discussion is very relevant when it comes to China and its media and communication sector. If it is regulated that what kind of information would be conveyed to the audience, then the role of media becomes relatively static. More there is control; the scope of media is narrowed. Moreover, gratifications theory plays and important role with the government being gratified with its power of media control. Since media and communication can play an active role in strengthening the democratic processes, Chinese authorities may challenge the socio-economic outreach of the media itself. P. C. Adams has tentatively enumerated the interactions between geography and media. Communication flows may be critically controlled by geographical factors of a given region. In analyzing the effects of geography on media and communication, we may get exposed to several familiar and unfamiliar aspects of geopolitical interventions (Adams, 2009). According to K. B. Jensen, social sciences and humanities too have intricate relationships with media and communication. In this way, not only politics and geography, but also social sciences and humanities become influential factors in deciding the role of media in a society (Jensen, 2002). In a country like China, there is enough scope to evaluate the importance of these theoretical considerations. Theories can be considered as important once again as we analyze the global communication. In the sphere of global communication, the trends are interrelated with the stakes involved and media theories shape up many aspects of the subject. According to T. L. McPhail --- China presents another example of the changing role of the media. During his 1998 trip to China, noted media critic Max Frankel discovered that “a thousand television stations convey American style talk shows and western soaps to poor slums.” In response, he wondered, “Can the internet scale the Great Wall? Can the global flow of information and images penetrate the defenses of a rigid old oligarchy? Can China run a free market economy without a free market in ideas?”( McPhail, 2006) In this context, certain examples can explicate the discussion more. News Corporation and Star TV During the early 1990s, Rupert Murdoch managed to get entry in the media and communication sector of China. News Corporation under his leadership was able to strike a deal with the Chinese government to start business in Chinese media sector. News Corporation owned papers in China earlier in the 1990s, as has been laid down by T. Marjoribanks in his book News Corporation, Technology and Workplace: Global Strategies, Local Challenges (Marjoribanks, 2000). The very title of the book clearly reflects that to what extent it was difficult to get access to the global media markets. In the following years, Rupert Murdoch was able to bring his Star TV in the television broadcasting industry. Towards the mid 1990s, the News Corporation group has to proceed in a step by step manner to ensure its presence in mainland China. Even this powerful organization could not escape the strict regulations of the communist regime. MTV Almost at the same time as News Corporation, MTV was also targeting the Chinese markets. But the conditions were stringent and so it had to enter in collaboration with Star TV, which has already secured broadcasting rights in China. However, everything did not go well and there was a break up. After clearing the initial hurdles, MTV formed the channel MTV Mandarin in the year 1995, which later evolved as MTV China and MTV Taiwan. Needless to say that MTV Mandarin actually broke up due to the tug of war between the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan). MTV is an example that how corporations may have to adjust with a communist regime. MTV has opened up their branch but they are mainly using Chinese artists and Chinese contents, very different from the rest on other MTV channels. (Cho & Chung, 2009) Time Warner A report from the Xinhuanews in October 2009 elucidates the situation of Time Warner. The company is eager to expand its operations in China’s speedier market expansion. In this context, it can be mentioned that the government has issued a new roadmap for encouraging foreign and private investments in media and communication under the “cultural sector”. Time Warner is concerned about its humble threshold of market access. The rewarding point is that the government is allowing entry of private capital from both home and abroad in the cultural fields. The modern Chinese cultural fields comprise Internet, multimedia broadcasting, and cellular TV too, which will be widely promoted. This is relevant information from the Time Warner’s viewpoint. The progress of the company in China is slow but steady (Xinhuanews, 2009). Contextually, it can be stated that fast digitalization of the Chinese pay television system has helped the international media organizations to find an anchorage in the country. If we expand the realm of media and communication to newer dimensions, then the inauguration of Barbie Store in Shanghai becomes an important consideration. The clout of global economy and American culture can be strongly felt. It is now a huge topic in China. Modernization of Chinese culture is become synchronized with the celebrated American symbol of Barbie. The teen age girls want to look like Barbie, and the wide range of accessories and dresses available with the Barbie dolls is really making a difference in China. Opening up of Barbie Superstore by Mattel at Shanghai is a symbol of major cultural significance. (Huffington Post, 2010) Challenges China is a country with complicated socio-economic and political structure. In theory, the country is under single party communist rule but in practice, capitalism is welcome. It can be well comprehended that this has weakened the democratic processes where the party line is strong enough to affect the course of action of media and communication organizations. Moreover, the problems like multi-ethnicity, socio-economic disparity, geopolitical diversities, and international criticism have been suppressed by a controlled flow of information through a restricted media. The book New Media for a New China by J. F. Scotton and W. A. Hachten becomes relevant in this context. In the days of economic liberalization, China is rapidly changing. The newspapers now have changing roles. From political propaganda of the twentieth century to commercial propaganda of the twenty-first century Chinese news papers are being directed to different directions. The sector of magazines has become “an industry in transition”, where the aforementioned gratifications theory is still forceful. However, deregulation is being witnessed in the realm of radio broadcasting and development of relatively more versatile radio programs is a positive sign. Television is being predominantly used for entertainment purpose, while news televisions are still under the state control. The private news channels cannot broadcast news on television without monitoring and censorship of the government. Xinhua remains the principle authority that regulates the flow of news and information. The writers of the book describe it as the “voice of the party”. However, advertising has been described as the “wings for the media”, where the scenario is rather optimistic (Scotton & Hachten, 2010). In 1990, there were 11231 advertising firms in the country. In the year 2003, there were 101786 advertising firms. This testifies the effect of economic liberalization and how the advertising sector has positively responded to it. Major changes have thus followed in the realm of public relations. Moreover, the film sector is also evolving as a rapidly changing industry. However, Y. Zhao has given a very realistic picture of present day China. According to him, media, marketing, and democracy are interrelated. The reality is that China has undergone a process of economic liberalization, which has still not been accomplished. This process of economic liberalization coupled with consistent opposition to democratization followed by political liberalization has given rise to several complexities. The processes of media and communication have been directed extensively to the private sector. This has led to extensive commercialization as opposed to democratization. Corporate intrusion has become easier and journalism has become propagandist in nature. Hence, there is an urgency to differentiate between “party line” and the “bottom line”. The trajectory of media reform has left “party journalism” almost untouched, which has added new dimensions to the meaning of the term liberalization. In this way, media communication in China has not harmed its political immunity, which means that the flow of information has been controlled by adopting powerful commercial model. Corruption has catalyzed this process and the ethical credibility of journalism itself is thus not above questions (Zhao, 1998). It has been mentioned earlier that according to P. Scannell, mass communication is intricately related with mass culture (Scannell, 2007). This means that commercial transformation must have affected the cultural transformation of the country. The changes in the recent cultural transformation of modern China have been testified by H. Yu in the book Media and Cultural Transformation in China. In the book, the extent of cultural transformation has been elucidated and the role of media has been considered to be crucial (Yu, 2009). In this way, we can examine that how western consumerism has got entry in the Chinese society. This is how static political conditions coupled with step by step economic liberalization have formed a commercial culture in the country. For a moment, this conclusion may appear to be strange. However, J. Wang helps us to explore the situation more. In today’s “new China”, the sectors of advertising and media have combined to form a communication trend that leads to a strong commercial culture (Wang, 2008). During the 1970s, a split occurred between the communist China and its close ally, the erstwhile Soviet Union. China began to minimize its tensions with the United States and economic liberalization followed under Deng Xao Ping. However, scars of the civil war, formation of Taiwan, Japanese incursions, and Sino-Soviet Split were difficult to heal and China remained immune to political reforms. Reluctance towards political reforms coupled with avoidance for cultural openness made intellectual evolution of media and culture harder. In absence of multiparty democracy, Chinese cultural sector has been far less complicated and it has been basically aligned to the party line. The Fall of Berlin Wall and the incident of Tiananmen Square in 1989 shook the very roots of the communist regime severely. In reaction to the Tiananmen Square protests, the communist regime enforced more control on the media and communication. It allowed the inflow of foreign media but restricted its role in the entertainment sector only. News channels and scope of intellectual debate were curtailed. (Free Tibet, 2009) Challenges in regards of media and communication in China are thus preponderant. China is a strict country when it comes to culture and cultural interaction. People are not ready to accept sex, violence, and international free news media. The government is also very careful and sometimes, hesitant towards new ventures. We must remember that China is the country of 30 million unreported famine deaths and Cultural Revolution. The Chinese society tends to cling to its pre-existing values, and the feeling of insecurity is still forceful inside the communist regime since the collapse of Soviet Union. It is hard to penetrate the realm of traditions and make way for newer values and systems. Moreover, fragmentation of the media world in East Asia between China, Taiwan, and Japan also poses a serious problem in the way of the expansionist media operations. Also, analyzing the trends of evolution of the illustrious organizations like News Corporation, MTV, Time Warner, and Turner International, it can be said that the process of liberalization has not been easy in China at least as far as the media communication sector is concerned. MTV had to split its operations in East Asia, and it had to frame a conservative policy specially designed for China. News Corporation is registering high profits although; it is also facing the problems of “glocalization”. Carring international culture and global economy to China is not easy and adjustments have to be made. The Chinese consider that media communication is a part of the cultural sector. China is reluctant to more cultural exchange. The role of the communist party is not the ultimate factor. The psychology of the country as a whole opposes increased cultural exchange. However, it is proceeding towards greater cultural exchange with the western world by means of economic liberalization in the field of media and communication. If we look at the history from 1949, we will find that the state owned media has been very, very powerful. In the years that followed the revolution, media had a propagandist role. This propaganda was in favor of the communist party and the communist regime at that time. It envisioned structuring the public psychology as per the revolutionary ideals. The structuring of the public psychology is still continuing in the form of media control. A primary condition to get access to the Chinese media world is “no sex, no violence, no news”. This focuses on the reality of Chinese media. This media originated from the communication system that worked as the ideological mouthpiece. In the 1990s, promotion of the corporatization of the media industries followed. However, in the year 2001, China has pledged to the World Trade Organization that it would gradually permit entry to foreign programs. When it comes to tradition, China’s standpoint is defensive. When it comes to capitalism, China is playing aggressively. But at the core of the system, Marxist ideology and the communist regime with Chinese characteristics still carry the legacy of Mao Zedong. Conclusion Mass culture is intricately related to the functionality of media and communication in a given region. Apparently, the Chinese society is coherent and less stratified. But the social market economy has led to socio-economic disparities too. The Chinese situation is complicated, and if the factor of regional dialects is considered, then the demography is complex as well. The economic growth of the country has ensured the rise of a flourishing consumer market in the region. This market has to be supplied with means and materials from all over the world, and statistics show that the possibilities are very wide ranging. However, A. J. Brown has categorized the Chinese revolution as too recent. The future of this revolution is still to be closely monitored (Brown, 2008). The break up of Soviet Union was far from imagination. But fall of Soviet Union is now a reality. The Chinese authority knows that what kind of damage free media can do to a communist administration. There is less possibility that the communist regime of China will move towards socio-political liberalization. Socio-political liberalization coupled with free media access can lead to more complexities in the region. The human rights record of China is not very appreciable. Still the country offers a picture of stability and relative prosperity in the region. The challenges in the way of expansion of media and communication operations have to be trounced by the international organizations. This is an imperative in regards of exploiting the existing markets and utilizes the scope of more international programs. The corporations like Time Warner and MTV are rapidly adjusting with conditions of this strong economy. If China continues to maintain its pace of development then more corporatization of media and communication becomes incumbent and necessary. Hence, there are more opportunities than risk in the region. Reference List Adams, P. C. 2009. Geographies of Media and Communication: A Critical Introduction. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Berger, A. A. 2000. Media and Communication Research Methods: An Introduction to Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications Inc. Brown, A. J. 2008. The Chinese Revolution. London: BibliBazaar LLC. Cho, S. H. & Chung, J. Y. 2009. We want our MTV: glocalisation of cable content in China, Korea and Japan.(Report) - Critical Arts | HighBeam Research - FREE trial. Available: http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-218817040.html. Last accessed 13 October, 2010 Free Tibet. 2009. Tiananmen Square massacre: 20 years on | Free Tibet Available: http://www.freetibet.org/about/20th-anniversary-tinananmen-square-massacre. Last accessed 13 October, 2010 Gifford, C. 2000. Media and Communication. New York: D K Publishing Huffington Post, 2010. Barbie In China: Mattel To Open Barbie Superstore In Shanghai. Available: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/03/03/barbie-in-china-mattel-to_n_171540.html. Last accessed 13 October 2010. Jensen, K. B. 2002. A Handbook of Media Communication Research: Qualitative and Quantitative Methodologies. New York: Routledge. Marjoribanks, T. 2000. News Corporation, Technology, and Workplace: Global Strategies, Local Challenge. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. McPhail, T. L. 2006. Global Communications: Theories, Stakeholders, and Trends. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Scannell, P. 2007. Media and Communication. London: SAGE Publications Ltd. Scotton, J. F. & Hachten, W. A. 2010. New Media for a New China. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Wang, J. 2008. Brand New China: Advertising, Media and Commercial Culture. Cambridge MA: Harvard University Press. Watson, J. 1998. Media Communication: An Introduction to Theory and Process. New York: Palgrave. Xinhuanews. 2009. Time Warner Eyes Bigger Market Share in China_English_Xinhua. Available: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-10/09/content_12199200.htm. Last accessed 11 October, 2010. Yu, H. 2009. Media and Cultural Transformation in China. New York: Routledge. Zhao, Y. 1998. Media, Marketing and Democracy in China: Between the Party Line and the Bottom Line. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. Zhu, Y. 2009. TV China. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Read More