University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository Communication ETDs Electronic Theses and Dissertations Summer 7-11-2018 INTERNATIONAL NEWS AGENCIES IN THE ERA OF GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS: CCTV’s CONTRA- FLOW AND THE FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE U.S. MEDIA’S SELECTION OF NEWS ABOUT CHINA HUAN RAN University of New Mexico Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cj_etds Part of the Journalism Studies Commons Recommended Citation RAN, HUAN. "INTERNATIONAL NEWS AGENCIES IN THE ERA OF GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS: CCTV’s CONTRA- FLOW AND THE FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE U.S. MEDIA’S SELECTION OF NEWS ABOUT CHINA." (2018). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/cj_etds/115 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Electronic Theses and Dissertations at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Communication ETDs by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. i Huan Ran _________________________________________________________________ Candidate Communication and Journalism _________________________________________________________________ Department This dissertation is approved, and it is acceptable in quality and form for publication: Approved by the Dissertation Committee: Dr. Ilia Rodríguez, Chairperson ________________________________________________________________________ Dr. Judith White ________________________________________________________________________ Professor Miguel Gandert ________________________________________________________________________ Dr. Yong Volz ________________________________________________________________________ ii INTERNATIONAL NEWS AGENCIES IN THE ERA OF GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS: CCTV’s CONTRA-FLOW AND THE FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE U.S. MEDIA’S SELECTION OF NEWS ABOUT CHINA By HUAN RAN B.A., Journalism, Sichuan International Studies University, 2002 M.A., Journalism, University of Missouri – Columbia, 2009 DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Communication The University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico July 2018 iii DEDICATION To my husband and son, parents, mentors and friends, who use their special inspirational ways to encourage me to keep growing and realize my potential. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The dissertation would not be successfully completed without selfless support of important people in my life. They have made an incredible difference to me. Thank you, Dr. Ilia Rodríguez, dissertation chair, mentor, and friend, for your powerful support and encouragement. When I was almost on the edge of giving up during the Ph.D. program, it was you who cheered me up and have been closely working with me to finish every step towards the completion of the doctoral degree. You are my lifetime mentor, guiding me to be strong; you are my role model, showing me how to help people in need; and you are my friend at heart, who I can truly trust. Thank you, Dr. Judith White, committee member, mentor, and friend for your clear instruction on quantitative analytical methods. I also appreciate your great support and understanding during my Ph.D. studies. When I came back to school after a one-year academic leave, your words, “I know you will come back!” made my academic life more meaningful. Thank you, Professor Miguel Gandert, committee member, mentor, and friend, for your endless support of my personal, academic, and professional advancement. Your vision of digital media and their profound impact on content creation has been quite inspirational for my approach to media studies. I also want to thank you for your tremendous assistance in making a significant international cultural exchange event happen in the 2016 summer. Thank you, Dr. Yong Volz, committee member, mentor, and friend, for your ceaseless support in my life. Even though you are so busy with your schedule, you quickly responded and accepted my request for being my outside reader for the dissertation. Your advice has added very unique perspectives to the dissertation. Your support let me experience the meaningfulness of mentorship and friendship, which I very much value. Particularly, I am very grateful for my “Jewish mother,” Ms. Ellen Ratner. You used “Ellen” style spiritual ways to push me to move on and complete the Ph.D. Your generous financial contributions toward my tuition removed a potential barrier to the completion of the degree. You know I will not disappoint you. v I do not know how to express my deep thankfulness to my husband. Sometimes, he is more like a mentor than a husband. Influenced by him, I became more mature and calm. I started looking into my weaknesses and trying to correct them. Especially during the Ph.D. studies, my husband has given me his endless support and understanding. So I have told myself I would never ever give up in difficult situations. Another special thankfulness is given to my beloved son, Wharton. You have brought me a more meaningful life, and thanks for being with me all the time. I deeply appreciate my parents’ unconditional love, understanding, and support. They are always with me in difficult times. Just like the name, Huan (meaning “happiness” in Chinese), they gave to me, they want me to be happy. Likewise, I hope they are happy and healthy. Because, sometimes, life is hard, I am fortunate to have my true friends: Chen Zhong, Suhan Chen, Jing Yang, Ran Xu, and Xi Deng. Because of all of you, I kept my commitment to pursuing a Ph.D. and finally completed the dissertation; and because of all of you, no matter how hard the future challenges would be, I am determined to make it through. vi INTERNATIONAL NEWS AGENCIES IN THE ERA OF GLOBAL COMMUNICATIONS: CCTV’s CONTRA-FLOW AND THE FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE U.S. MEDIA’S SELECTION OF NEWS ABOUT CHINA By HUAN RAN B.A., Journalism, Sichuan International Studies University, 2002 M.A., Journalism, University of Missouri – Columbia, 2009 Ph.D., Communication, University of New Mexico, 2018 ABSTRACT This research aimed to measure the initial perceptions of CCTV+ among U.S. journalists in 2011, a moment that marked the launch of CCTV News Content or CCTV+, a global news service by CCTV. The research was based on an analysis of surveys (n=572) with managers and directors of U.S. news agencies. Survey data collected was complemented with analysis of qualitative data from open-ended interview questions to explore how ideological factors influence U.S. journalists’ selection of news through CCTV+. The research found that the most important attributes of news coverage in U.S. journalists’ decision-making to use a foreign TV news service are: timeliness of international news content, relevance to the local audience, and editorial independence. The research also identified accuracy, objectivity, and entertainment value as the top 3 news values that influence U.S. journalists’ decision-making. Regarding news topics about China that are of interest to U.S. journalists, the top3 topics are natural disasters, China’s relationship with the U.S. and North America, and quality of consumer products in China. The research addressed the main factors that prevent U.S. journalists from using CCTV+. They are irrelevance to their audience, lack of familiarity with CCTV, and concerns about CCTV’s editorial independence from the government. In addition, the research identified three challenges faced by global contra-flows of information, from non-Western news sources to Western publics, in the context of globalization. They are U.S. journalists’ preference of U.S. sources for international news and coverage, vii perceived lack of relevance to local interests, and concerns about foreign news agencies’ credibility and editorial independence. The study provides important guidance about news feeds distribution to international news agencies, especially to those that are producing contra-flows of information and aspire to voice perspectives that are different from U.S.-led Western news agencies. As a means of strategic communication in the U.S. news market, international news agencies can focus on partnering regularly with U.S. news agencies/networks while feeding news content that is relevant to the U.S. local audiences. Without trying to change bilateral ideological perspectives, international news agencies can also consider providing entertaining, interesting, and impactful news feeds that inch closer to U.S. journalists’ professional expectations. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………1 Significance of the Study……………………………………………………………….....5 Chapters Outline…………………………………………………………………………..6 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW……………………………………………….....8 Part 1. Globalization and Media: Theoretical Framework………………………………..9 Part 2. Historical Evolution of Western International News Agencies and the Effects of Globalization Trends since the 1990s……………………………………………………14 The Beginnings of European Control of Global News, 1840s-1920s…………………..14 Post-First World War International News System, 1920s-1950s……………………….16 The Big Four’s Hegemony in the International News Market, 1950s-1980s…………...18 NWICO and the Development of National Agencies in the Third World, 1950s- 1980s……………………………………………………………………………………..20 Impact of Globalization on International News Agencies’ Flows and Contra-flow, 1990s to the 21st Century24…………………………………………………………………...24 Part 3. CCTV’s Expansion in the Backdrop of Globalization…………………………...29 CCTV’s Quest to Become an Influential International News Agency………………….31 Challenges to