摘 要

随着中国经济实力的增强，中国在国际舞台上拥有了更大的话语权。在全球化迅速发展的今天，信息的掌握程度以及传播能力成为了影响国际舆论的重要因素。作为对外传播的窗口以及国际社会了解中国的主要渠道，我国英文媒体的重要性愈发突出。在增强我国文化软实力，提高我国对外文化传播的力度与效果的时代要求下，文化自信的提出为我国英语媒体的发展指明了方向。我国英语媒体由于起步晚，受西方媒体压制等历史原因，并未在文化传播中取得良好的效果。随着我国综合国力的增强，国际上掀起了学习汉语文化的热潮，因此我国应当抓住机会向世界展示我国优秀的传统文化，并塑造我国热爱和平的友好形象，打击国际上的中国威胁论。本文以中国日报的英文网站为案例，分析中国英语媒体的现状，找出现阶段存在的问题，阐述造成此类问题的原因，并结合文化自信的时代背景提出可行性建议。

关键词：文化自信；英语媒体；中国日报；文化影响力

Abstract

With the strengthening of Chinese economy, China has won a bigger voice in the international community. In the era of globalization, the information mastery and the ability to disseminate information become the crucial factors that influence the international opinion. As the tool of external spread and the channel for the world to know about China, Chinese English media play a more significant role at present. Under the historical background of strengthening China’s soft power and enhancing the ability and the effect of international communication, the idea of cultural confidence has pointed out a bright way for the development of Chinese English media. For the late beginning and the pressure from the western media, Chinese English media don’t achieve excellent effect of cultural communication. Now the craze about mandarin and Chinese culture from the international society provides a good opportunity for China to present excellent Chinese traditional culture to the world. In this way, China can build an international image of promoting peace and being friendly, which helps eliminate the China threat theory. This paper takes China Daily as an example and analyzes the deficiencies of this Chinese English News Website to give feasible suggestions on promoting cultural influence of Chinese English media by improving cultural confidence.

Key Words: Cultural Confidence; Chinese English media; China Daily; International Influence

Contents

1 Introduction 1

2 Cultural Confidence and Chinese English Media 3

2.1 Cultural Confidence 3

2.2 The Development of Chinese English Media 3

2.3 Cultural Confidence and Cultural Influence 4

3 The Status Quo of China Daily 6

3.1 Diversified News Category 6

3. 2 International Perspective 6

3. 3 Proficient English Expression 7

3. 4 An Output of Chinese Value 7

4 Analytical Study of the Existing Problems of China Daily 9

4.1 Website Design 9

4.2 Language Style 11

4.3 News Originality 13

4.4 Target Readers 13

5 Causes Leading to the Existing Problems of China Daily 15

5.1 Cultural Difference between Western Countries and China 15

5.2 Information disparity in Cross-cultural Communication 15

5.3 Different Social Systems between Western Countries and China 16

5.4 Inveterate Misunderstandings on Chinese Media 17

5.5 Lack of Professionals 17

6 Strategies on Promoting Cultural Influence of China Daily 19

6.1 Presenting Cultural Confidence 19

6.2 Improving the Speed and the Quality of News 19

6.3 Understanding the need of the audience 20

6.4 Showing Flexibility 20

6.5 Being Impartial 20

6.6 Cooperating with Western Agencies 21

7 Conclusion 22

References 23

Acknowledgements 25

Promoting Cultural Influence of Chinese English Media under the Background of Cultural Confidence—a Case Study of China Daily

1 Introduction

The 21st century has seen the rapid development of globalization, with external propaganda playing a more significant role in our political lives. However, Chinese international communication is still in a sluggish situation. The lagged growth of Chinese English media and cultural barriers have deeply impaired cultural communication. In the competitive international stage, Chinese English media have to make breakthroughs and speak louder in the international community.

China's embrace of globalization has enhanced its cultural influence to a large extent. However, compared with the booming economy, China’s cultural influence is not well recognized globally. Thus, some western countries depict China's development as a big threat. “Traditional Chinese culture can help remove such unwarranted fears of these countries by making China more attractive to foreigners and convincing the outside world of China's peaceful development (Zhang, 2018).” To improve China’s cultural influence and to attract foreign audiences, cultural confidence is indispensable, which has pointed out a bright way for the advancement of Chinese English media, an important channel for international communication. Since Chinese English media shoulder the responsibility of cultural communication, cultural characteristics are essential in the process of communication. The lack of Cultural Confidence will hinder China’s international influence and the effect of cultural communication. Chinese English media have to follow a new way to demonstrate Chinese characteristics and present excellent Chinese traditional culture. Thus, in the process of external communication, Chinese English media have to maintain excellent traditional cultural value, and deliver it properly to the audience in order to pave the way for the external spread of Chinese traditional value, which can also enhance China’s international status and improve China’s international image.

The previous studies in China on this topic mainly focused on the methods to improve the external spread of Chinese culture or increase the international influence of Chinese English media, but most studies haven’t connected with the historical background. This paper will analyze the problems and solutions of China Daily under the historical background of cultural communication，and discuss several feasible methods to improve cultural confidence and at the same time to enhance the international influence of Chinese English media.

2 Cultural Confidence and Chinese English Media

2.1 Cultural Confidence

Since the 18^th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, President Xi has mentioned cultural confidence for many times, expressing his respect for Chinese traditional culture. Knowing the definition of cultural confidence and following the instructions of traditional culture become a necessity. According to Jiangbo Li, Cultural Confidence is a manifestation of spiritual maturity based on rational knowledge, and also a kind of positive approval of a country or a nation’s cultural value, which triggers the advancement of its culture (Li amp; Yao, 2016). On the 95th anniversary of the founding of Chinese Communist Party, President Xi pointed out that Chinese excellent traditional cultures, fostered from 5000 years’ cultural development, revolutionary culture and the advanced socialist culture formed in the great struggle of the Communist Party and its people, have shown China’s deepest spiritual pursuit over the course of time (Xi, 2016). From Xi’s words, it is obvious that the confidence of Chinese culture should consist of the confidence of three levels---Chinese excellent traditional culture, revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture. Therefore, presenting Chinese excellent traditional culture, revolutionary culture and advanced socialist culture is the essence of promoting cultural confidence.

2.2 The Development of Chinese English Media

Media refer to the process of conveying information by talking, writing or some other image signs (Franklin, 2005). In the international community, the function of media includes shaping the national image, speaking for its country and improving the cultural influence for its country. China has to make full use of media to improve her soft power. Before taking measures to facilitate the communication ability of Chinese English media, it is imperative to know the development of Chinese English media in the past in order to find out the deficiencies and implement better approaches.