China's distorted image in the 
world may become a major obstacle to its future growth, warned the first Global 
Journalism and Communication Conference, held over the weekend in Beijing. 
"Sometimes, even stories which are reported objectively can give the wrong 
signal," Wu Jianmin, president of Foreign Affairs College and former Chinese 
Ambassador to France, told attendees. 
For example, the Chinese media reports heavily on China's GDP and trade 
growth, giving the impression that everything in the country is rosy. 
"It is true China is getting stronger and more prosperous, and the rise of 
China is the mainstream of the information we want to convey to the world," said 
Wu. 
"But success has a price, and we need to report the problems we have as 
well." 
For example, more than 2.4 million Chinese are unemployed, while more than 
350 million have no access to clean drinking water, said Wu. 
"If the Chinese media improves what it reports to the outside world, it will 
greatly benefit the development of ties between China and the rest of the 
world." 
Some conference participants said biased stands taken by some Western media 
have caused a further deterioration of China's distorted international image. 
"For decades most of the Western media's coverage of China was about the 
nation's weaknesses," Liu Kang, director of Chinese Media and Communication 
Studies at Duke University, said. 
"They are astonished to see a real, robust and attractive China once they 
arrive here." 
Experts called for Chinese media to take steps to restore the national image 
and improve their say in international journalism and communications. 
"It is interesting that the 'China threat' theory has actually been created 
by yourselves to some extent, since all the Western world can read about China 
is the sunny side of the nation," said Miles Young, chairman of Ogilvy and 
Mather Asia Pacific. 
"I suggest the Chinese media takes a fairer and more confident approach, 
showing the world a more balanced picture of the country." 
Zhu Yinghuang, former editor-in-chief of China Daily, further stressed the 
huge challenges and responsibilities facing Chinese media. 
"A nation's image is established by the country itself, but the media plays 
an important role," Zhu said. "We cannot count on Western society to 
dramatically change its views of China, rather we ourselves need to act first." 
To date major Chinese media providing overseas services include China Daily, 
CCTV 9, China Radio International, the Xinhua News Agency, People's Daily, the 
China News Service and Shanghai-based Dragon TV, which has just marked the 20th 
anniversary of its English news service.