Presenting the true picture of China
By Qu Yingpu and Zhao Huanxin (China Daily)Updated: 2007-01-04 07:15
Editor's note: The State Council Information Office (SCIO) was set up in 1991 to present China's true picture to the outside world and facilitate the jobs of overseas journalists to report on the country. Its first press conference took place in 1993. Last year, 59 ministers and their deputies addressed 58 press conferences at the SCIO.
SCIO Vice-Minister Wang Guoqing talked to China Daily's Qu Yingpu and Zhao Huanxin about the recent changes in his office and those who briefed the press and other issues.
Question: You've been overseeing the transition from "managing the media" to "serving the media". How will your office practice what it preaches?
Wang Guoqing: Take the White Papers for example. Each year we issue a certain number of White Papers expounding government policies and propositions.
A couple of years ago, we issued them in advance exclusively through Xinhua News Agency. But that was disappointing for a host of foreign news organizations operating in Beijing.
Now we deliver copies of the White Papers to foreign as well as Chinese news agencies before they are actually published to help journalists either to use the information or dig deep for more news.
The embargoed release is often followed by a press conference at the SCIO, usually the next day, to address the media's queries, which again was rare occurrence four or five years ago.
Last year, for instance, we held three press conferences for the release of White Papers on China's environmental protection, space activities and aging population.
We are now pushing for changes in reporting on the State Council's executive meetings.
(Presided over by the premier and other Cabinet members, the meetings are usually held three times a month to deliberate and decide issues such as reforming State-owned enterprises and national disaster relief.)
Only Xinhua and a few other media outlets cover the proceedings of the conferences.
But this year we'll see if it's possible to build a news release mechanism for the executive meetings so that the issues discussed could be disseminated in a more efficient way and through multiple channels.
Q: You've hosted dozens of press conferences since you joined the SCIO in 2000. How would you describe the changes in the "grillings" by reporters?
Wang: The first time is often the toughest. Not surprisingly, one or two high-ranking officials' hands trembled on their maiden appearance.
But they adapted and reacted to being in the limelight really quickly. Reporters have even called the chiefs of several State Council departments "star spokespersons" for their friendliness and their sense of humor.
Still, once in a while you'll find government officials addressing the media as if they were speaking to their subordinates, reading lengthy and dull speeches, and steering clear of vital points.
But I have asked them to focus on the points they most want to share and leave more time for questions.
Another change is the way officials respond to requests for news conferences.
Three years ago, we had to persuade ministers to brief the media on pressing issues. Sometimes the SCIO minister himself had to convince them to be present. Now ministerial-level officials are volunteering to address press conferences and make full use of the SCIO platform to inform the public.
The other day I talked to Minister of Education Zhou Ji about the latest annual survey of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, which found that among the top public complaints those against exorbitant education fees had dropped significantly.
In the past, grievances against education often topped the list of worries and woes.
We agreed that the falling public worry over education could be partly attributed to a series of press conferences held regularly by the ministry through the SCIO last year. These efforts had helped redress their grievances and made the ministry programmes more transparent.
Q: Is the SCIO encouraging officials to hold more press conferences independently?
Wang: We are trying to set up a three-tier government news briefing system that would feature spokespersons for the State Council, all central government ministries and provincial-level governments.
One of our priorities is to help more official institutions and departments of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee hold regular news briefings and provide spokespersons.
Last week, the SCIO for the first time provided contacts for spokespersons for seven departments of the CPC Central Committee, including the International Liaison Department and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
The ministries of education, health and public security started to meet the press regularly last year, with nine more expected this year.
We believe this will add momentum to enhancing government accountability and transparency.
Since they will face the press at a fixed time and place, officials will have to come up with some newsworthy messages and keep the public better informed about what is going on.
If press conferences are not planned regularly, reporters will try to heap
all their questions at one time and may still not be satisfied with the answers.
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