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Chinese Newspaper Coverage of the Beijing Olympics Games CHINESE NEWSPAPER COVERAGE OF THE BEIJING OLYMPICS GAMES: A COMPARATIVE FRAMING STUDY OF CHINESE MEDIA by JINGTAO YUAN A THESIS Presented to the School ofJournalism and Communication and the Graduate School ofthe University of Oregon in partial fulfillment ofthe requirements for the degree of Master ofArts December 2009 11 "Chinese Newspaper Coverage of the Beijing Olympics Games: A Comparative Framing Study ofChinese Media," a thesis prepared by Jingtao Yuan in partial fulfillment ofthe requirements for the Master ofArts degree in the School ofJournalism and Communication. This thesis has been approved and accepted by: Date Committee in Charge: Patricia Curtin, Chair John Russial H. Leslie Steeves Accepted by: Dean ofthe Graduate School 111 © 2009 Jingtao Yuan IV An Abstract ofthe Thesis of Jingtao Yuan for the degree of Master ofArts in the School of Journalism and Communication to be taken December 2009 Title: CHINESE NEWSPAPER COVERAGE OF THE BELTTNG OLYMPICS GAMES: A COMPARATIVE FRAMING STUDY OF CHINESE MEDIA Approved: Dr. Patricia The Olympics games are not only a sport but also a media event. In 2008, China hosted the Olympics Games for the first time. The coverage ofthe Beijing Olympics Games in the Chinese media can reflect the characteristics ofmedia and societal development in today's China. The study examines qualitatively the use of frames in coverage of the Beijing Olympics Games in 11 dailies and 2 weeklies in China. Four new issue-specific frames are found in the Chinese newspapers. The use of the existmg six generic and five issue-specific frames are discussed in the Chinese context. The study finds that the Chinese media get more freedom in some areas that do not have direct links with politics. In the areas related to politics, the government is still controlling the media. v CURRICULUM VITAE NAME OF AUTHOR: Jingtao Yuan GRADUATE AND UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOLS ATTENDED: University of Oregon, Eugene, U.S.A Peking University, Beijing, P.R. China Liaoning University, Shenyang, P.R. China DEGREES AWARDED: Master ofArts, University ofOregon, 2009 Master ofArts, Peking University, 2002 Bachelor ofArts, Liaoning University, 1997 AREAS OF SPECIAL INTEREST: Communication theories, Media studies PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: Journalist, China Central Television Station, 2002-2004 Editor, China Radio International, 2004-2005 GRANTS, AWARDS AND HONORS: Kenneth S. Ghent Scholarship awarded by the international affairs at UO, 2008 Graduate research funding awarded by SOJC at UO, 2009 VI ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to express sincere appreciation to Professor Curtin for her support and encouragement during my graduate studies at the University ofOregon. I also wish to thank all the teachers at the School ofJournalism and Communication for their help and input in my two years studies at the University ofOregon. VB TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page I. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 1 Overview 1 China and the Olympics..................................................................................... 3 Transition ofthe Media System since 1978 in China.......................................... 6 Literature Review.................... 9 Research Questions............................................................................................ 21 II. METHOD.................... 23 Sample 23 Definition ofNews Story 26 Data Analysis.................................................................................................... 27 III. RESULTS.................. 30 Results for Research Question One.................................................................... 30 Results for Research Question Two................................................................... 50 Results for Research Question Three................................................................. 59 IV. DISCUSSION 75 REFERENCES........................................................................................................ 84 Vlll Chapter Page LIST OF TABLES Table Page 1. Newspapers used in the study . 24 2. Number ofstories in the 13 newspapers . 26 3. Frequency ofresponsibility frame . 30 4. Frequency ofhuman interest frame . 33 5. Frequency of economic consequence frame . 37 6. Frequency ofmorality frame . 40 7. Frequency ofconflict frame . 45 8. Frequency ofleadership frame . 48 9. Frequency ofnationality frame .. 51 10. Frequency ofpolitical perspective frame .. 54 11. Frequency ofwinning medals means success frame .. 56 12. Frequency ofgender frame . 59 13 . Frequency ofChinese culture frame . 60 14. Frequency ofthe green and high-technology Olympics frame . 65 15. Frequency ofwinning medals does not mean success frame . 67 16. Frequency ofthe smooth and efficient Olympics frame . 70 17. Frames that organs tend to use .. 76 18. Frames that commercial newspapers tend to use .. 77 19. Frames both types ofnewspapers tend to use .. 77 1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Overview The Olympic Games are attracting more and more attention in the contemporary world. They are not only a sporting but also a media event. For the first time, the Olympics were held in China in 2008. Thus, a study of coverage of the Beijing Olympics in Chinese newspapers provides an opportunity to enrich understanding of communication in today's China. Today, governments often use the Olympics Games to burnish their national images. The Olympics can also become an important tool of creating national identity. Because all media are controlled by the government in China, they also serve to build national image under the guidance ofthe government. A study of Chinese media coverage ofthe Beijing Olympics then enhances our understanding ofthe relationship among media and government, political, and social development in China. In essence, the Olympics Games are a product ofWestem culture. To some extent, the Beijing Olympics Games are an Eastern expression ofWestern events. As a result, the Beijing Olympics provide a ground for cross-cultural study. Compared to other Olympics studies, a study ofChinese coverage of the Beijing Olympics allows people outside China to gain a better understanding of China and Chinese culture. 2 For two reasons, the Beijing Olympics offer a unique opportunity to examine the transition ofthe media system in China from state controlled to more private control. First, the Beijing Olympics were such an important event that almost all news media in China had to cover them, allowing a holistic comparison ofcoverage among different media. Second, the Olympics are a sports event with political implications. The nature of the Olympics awards Chinese media a certain degree of editorial autonomy to cover the event. In contrast, when reporting solely political events, the Chinese media represent only the single voice of government. By analyzing the differences among media coverage, the extent of autonomy ofdifferent media are examined, and thus some current characteristics ofthe transition ofthe Chinese media system are explored. The study focuses on analyzing the coverage of 11 dailies and 2 weeklies in China, covering the whole Olympics period from August 8 to August 25, 2008. By type, the sample includes Party organ papers and commercial newspapers. By location, the sample comes from 6 cities in China. The coverage in the study includes news reporting, editorials, commentaries, columns, and other stories related to the Olympics in those media during the whole Olympic Games period. The study is a qualitative one. The author analyzes the application oftraditional news frames in the Chinese context in 13 newspapers. At the same time, the author explores any emergent new news frames used by Chinese newspapers to cover the Beijing Olympics. The frequency ofthose frames in the Beijing Olympics Games is reported. The purpose ofthe study is to examine how Chinese newspapers frame coverage of the Beijing Olympics Games. By discussing the use ofnews frames, some characters of 3 the media system during this transitional period from state controlled to private control in today's China are uncovered. China and the Olympics When the first modem Olympic Games were founded in Athens in 1896, China still was under the rule ofthe Qing Dynasty. Even at that time, Chinese elites began to realize the possibility to reinvigorate the country through Western sports (Xu, 2008). However, it was in the 1920s that China started to make a connection with the international Olympic movement. According to Olympic Review, an official publication ofthe International Olympics Committee (lOC), the Chinese Olympics Committee was accepted as a member ofIOC in 1922 (lOC, 1973). Nevertheless, China did not take part in the Olympics officially until the government ofthe Republic of China sent its delegation to the Los Angeles Olympics Games in 1932. In that Olympics, Liu Changchun, a male Chinese athlete, took part in the 100-meter and 200-meter races. From then on, the Government ofthe Republic ofChina continued to send its delegations to participate in the games: the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games and the 1948 London Olympic Games. Founded in 1949, the Government ofthe People's Republic of China (PRC) sent a delegation to participate in the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. In 1956, the government ofthe PRC declared that it would not take part in the Melbourne Olympics because the IOC also allowed a delegation from the Republic of China. Two years later, the Chinese government withdrew from the IOC for the same reason (lOC, Olympics Review,
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