Activity Category: Media Engagement Activity

China-Thai Media Forum

Written by Editors on March 23, 2025.

On January 17, 2025, a Sino-Thai media cooperation forum titled “Our Golden Friendship: Joining Hands to Build a China-Thailand Community with a Shared Future Media and Think Tank Dialogue” (我们金色的友谊：携手构建中泰命运共同体媒体智库对话会) was held in Bangkok, bringing together journalists, media specialists, and think tank researchers from both countries to discuss what they characterized as the responsibility of media and think tanks in both countries to “promote mutual trust and cooperation” as China-Thailand relations approach their 50th anniversary in 2025. Former Thai Deputy Prime Minister Pinit Jarusombat (披尼) emphasized the importance of leveraging media and think tanks to “strengthen people-to-people connections” between the two nations. The forum was organized by China International Communication Group (中国外文局), or CICG, the Chinese Embassy in Thailand, and Yunnan Province’s Propaganda Office, with key attendees including Gao Anming (高岸明), Editor-in-Chief of China International Communication Group, and General Surasit Thanatthang (苏拉西·塔纳唐) from the National Research Council of Thailand. Chinese Ambassador Han Zhiqiang (韩志强) delivered a video address highlighting the bilateral partnership.

Star Media Group Partnership with Contemporary World

Written by Editors on March 23, 2025.

Star Media Group (SMG) and China’s Contemporary World magazine (當代世界), which operates under the International Department of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee, signed a cooperation agreement in Kuala Lumpur on April 2, 2024. SMG CEO Chan Seng Fatt (陳成發) called the partnership a “golden opportunity” that would bridge regional divides through “concerted media collaboration,” acknowledging challenges including “language barriers, cultural misunderstandings, and differing political landscapes.” Contemporary World Magazine Director General Lu Xuejun (盧學軍) said the initiative followed discussions between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim in March 2023, describing the media’s role as serving as a “bridge between the countries’ citizens” – typical rhetoric used by Chinese state media to frame overseas media partnerships as cultural exchange rather than external propaganda. The agreement, signed during the Contemporary World: Cultural Exchange roundtable, coincided with Malaysia-China’s 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations celebrations.

Chinese Ambassador to Italy Meets Deputy Director of Italy’s TG5

Written by Editors on March 23, 2025.

On July 25, 2017, Chinese Ambassador Li Ruiyu (李瑞宇) met with Enrico Rondoni, Deputy Director of TG5, an Italian television news channel owned by Mediaset Italia S.P.A. During the meeting, Li presented exchanges and achievements between Italy and China in politics, commerce, culture, and technology. Li expressed hope that TG5 would enhance coverage of China’s economic development to give Italians “a more complete and objective idea of China.” Rondoni has served as Deputy Director of TG5 since 2006, after being Central Editor and Foreign Editor for nine years. The event was attended by Italian Deputy Minister of Economic Development Ivan Scalfarotto, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General for Country System Promotion Vincenzo De Luca, and Italian Ambassador to China Ettore Francesco Sequi, alongside representatives from Italian government, business and media.

Media Seminar in Beijing with Delegation of Laos and Myanmar Journalists

Written by Editors on March 23, 2025.

In September 2017, thirteen journalists from Laos and Myanmar participated in a two-week seminar in Beijing focused on China’s development, media roles, and social responsibility. The closing ceremony was held on September 28, 2017, attended by Zhao Lijun (赵立军), Director of the China International Publishing Group (中国外文局) Training Center. The seminar aimed “to enhance the traditional friendship and cooperation between China and the two ASEAN member countries,” according to the Lao News Agency (KPL). Officials briefed participants on China’s development policies and achievements since its 1978 economic reforms. Zhao stated that the Belt and Road Initiative, launched by President Xi Jinping, “upholds shared consultation, shared construction and shared benefits” and is “inclusive rather than exclusive.” The program included visits to Xinhua News Agency (新華社) and Guangdong province to observe media operations and regional development.

Nouvelles d’Europe Collaboration with Xinmin Evening News

Written by Editors on March 23, 2025.

Nouvelles d’Europe (歐洲時報), established in 1983, partnered with Shanghai’s Xinmin Evening News (新民晚報) to launch Europe Weekly (歐洲聯合週報) in Paris in February 2005. The weekly newspaper published on Saturdays and said it focused on “helping Chinese integrate into mainstream European society” and providing information about “development opportunities in China.” The paper described itself as combining “knowledge, entertainment, interactivity, and practicality” with sections on European law, global news, and China-focused content. Nouvelles d’Europe reported that editions were published in France, Austria, Germany, and Hungary, with 36 pages covering topics from “European focus” (歐陸聚焦) to “returning to China guide” (回國指南). The weekly ceased publication in 2008.