China has used media diplomacy in the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands issue to shape public opinion and support its claims. The document examines China's media diplomacy between 2012-2013, when coverage of the issue intensified. It finds that China used state-run media like CCTV and Xinhua to promote its position domestically and abroad, strengthen historical narratives of its claims, and mobilize Chinese public support during anti-Japanese protests while maintaining hopes for negotiations. The study aims to analyze how media diplomacy affected public opinion and potentially political decisions regarding the disputed islands.

1. China’s Media Diplomacy in The
Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands Issue
Le Thi My Danh
MA in International Relations
International University of Japan
Dong Nai Radio and Television Station, Vietnam

2. 2
1. Motivation
 The Senkaku/Diaoyu islands issue is a flashpoint in the
region.
 The issue claims are not new, but the way by which
they captured media since 2012 has been totally
different with those in the previous years.
 The governments have
used the media
 as a tool to raise the
patriotic emotions in its
citizens,
 as a channel to proclaim the
legitimacy of its position in
the issue in the minds of
oversea audiences

3. 3
1. Motivation
 The root causes of the issue are
the gaps in perception and identity
between the two nations; the
media are one of the most
powerful tool to shaping public
identity.
  Examining the issue from the
media perspective will help to
examine the issue from the root
level and help to fulfil the overall
picture of the issue
 Employing a new example.
 Examining whether the theory of
media diplomacy is workable in the
complicated social contexts, on
such a sensitive territorial issue or
not.
 1. How did the governments in
China conduct its media
diplomacy over the islands
issue during the mentioned
period? What were the objects
of their media diplomacy?
 2. What were the common
media narratives that the
national media outlets in China
covered over the issue? How
did these media narratives
impact on the issue and the
Sino-Japanese relations?
 3. What are the effects of the
media diplomacy?
2. Research
questions

4. 4
3. Literature Review
 Media and politics
 Walter E Volkomer (2012): the media interact with the
politics world mainly in three ways
 Reporting issue,
 Setting agenda,
 Investing problem.
 Media and diplomacy
 The study of the media’s role in diplomacy approaches in
two ways:
 The media as the political instrument employed by policymakers to
achieve their diplomatic goals. Gilboa (2002) and Cohen (1986) with
the concept of “media diplomacy”.
 The impact that media and communication technologies have on the
conduct of foreign policy.

5. 5
3. Literature Review
 Media and diplomacy:
 Philips Davison (“News Media and International
Negotiation”,1974): the positive and negative effects of
the media in conducting diplomacy
 Positive effects:
 supplying information;
 helping the government understand how much desirability other
governments have in negotiations;
 coordinating agencies within a single government by informing about
each other’s intention and about the positions of their governments;
 offering a connection channel between negotiators and public, as
well as between diplomats from different countries.
 Negative effects: publicity could undermine diplomats’ public
image and leaks can damage the truth among governments

6. 6
3. Literature Review
 Media and diplomacy:
 Yoel Cohen (“Media Diplomacy”, 1986):
 The concept of “media diplomacy” is identified through
the relationships as:
 An information source
 Channels for policymakers communicate within a state, as well as in
inter-states
 A tool to achieve support from the public.
 The impact of the media on foreign policy decision-
making process:
 For horizontal impact, the media create a forum to exchange
information, to discuss and express their attitudes towards foreign
policy.
 For vertical impact, the object of the media’s influence now is the
Parliament because, as his observation, it is easy for Parliament put
pressure on government to change a policy.

7. 7
 Media and diplomacy in conflict:
 Eytan Gilboa’s media diplomacy: MD happens when diplomats or
leaders “use the media to send messages to leaders of rival states and
to non-state actors” through its instruments such as speeches, press
conferences, interviews, visits, media events, or even leaks…
3. Literature Review
Gov. A counters Gov. B’s
propaganda
•Uses the media to
explain its policy
•Uses the media to
persuade its target
public
Government A
•Changing their mind and opinion
regarding government A’s policy
•Persuading their government to
change policy towards country A.
Its target public
(ex: country B) •Receiving government A’s
message
•Considering its policy towards
country A
Government B

8. 8
3. Literature Review
 Media and diplomacy for peacebuilding stage
 Gilboa:
 Media diplomacy “refers to use of the media by leaders to express interest in negotiation,
to build confidence and to mobilize public support for agreements.”
 Channel for breaking diplomatic deadlock due to the signalling function,
 When a breakthrough has been achieved, officials might use the media to propagate
and cultivate support from the public in the very first step of peace process.
Gov. A and/or Gov. B seek
a solution through
negotiation
•Uses the media to
explain its policy
•Uses the media to
persuade its target
public
Government A
•Changing their mind and opinion
regarding government A’s policy
•Persuading their government to change
policy towards country A.
Its target public
(ex: country B) •Receiving government A’s
message
•Considering its policy towards
country A
Government B

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In sum,
The fundamental functions of the media in the
diplomatic sphere:
 An information source
 A communicating channel (among diplomats, among
governments, between diplomats and non-state actor,
between diplomats and the public),
 A tool to achieve the public’s support (between state and
the public in the target countries)
In a confrontational relationship: the media are
utilized to criticize each other with a hostile attitude.
Ready for conflict resolution: the media are used to
seek a solution via negotiations.
3. Literature Review

10. 10
5. Empirical Test
 a. Scope of work
 Actors: China (state-run media
outlets: CCTV, Xinhua)
 Social media is not discussed in
this thesis.
 Time frame:
 From 2012 to 2013, especially
focusing on August and
September 2012.
 b. Measurement
 This study will be a qualitative
analysis.
 Books; journal articles; news
reports; television; and
editorials about China and
Japan and the
Senkaku/Diaoyu islands issue
will be reviewed.
 Limitation of the hypothesis:
Governm
ent
MediaPublic

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c. Analytical Framework – Media Diplomacy
 Media diplomacy happens as a government utilizes the media’s instrument such
as speeches, press conferences, interviews, visits, media events, or even leaks,
etc., to send messages to its target audiences including leaders of rival
government and non-state actors. (Etyal Gilboa, 2001)
 Governments are required to predict how their messages regarding foreign policy
will be consumed by different stakeholders and how these target audiences are
likely to respond.
 In the Islands issue, public perceptions are partly “formed by the historical
narratives of national identity, political and geographical awareness, notions of
pride, shame, heroic conquest, or suffering and loss.”
 “Media diplomacy” will help to understand how the issue has been re-counted
and changed from the territorial issue story to the historical narratives of national
identity.
5. Empirical Test
Government
of country A
Country B (leaders,
diplomats, and non-
state actors…)
Public of country B

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c. Analytical Framework – Media Diplomacy
 Media diplomacy vs public diplomacy
 (Yoel Cohen, 1986; Gilboa,2001)
Media diplomacy
- Sending signals
between governments
through the media
outlets;
- Being a source of
information.
- Occurring in a
particular diplomatic
event or in an interview
with leaders of states,
etc. (Short term)
Public diplomacy
Including all public
aspects (information
exchange, cultural
activities), to supports
for current foreign policy
but also to build up the
long-term national
interests.
- Conducting in a long
term
some
aspects
(cultural
exchange,
etc.,)
5. Empirical Test

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6. Conclusion
 The issue examined in this paper is that Media
diplomacy affects public opinion which might affect
political decision making. It was hypothesized that
the Chinese government has utilized media
diplomacy to affect domestic and international public
opinions.
 By answering the research questions, the paper
proves the hypothesis:
 Media diplomacy affects public opinions which might
affect political decision making, and the media diplomacy
of the Chinese government affected domestically and
internationally to public opinions.

14. China’s media diplomacy in the 2012
anti-Japanese protests
 1. Before the anti-Japanese protests
 2. China’s media diplomacy during the anti-Japanese protests
 2.a Recording the government’s actions
 •Recording and sending effectively the government’s point of view
 •Showing up the Chinese government’s capability of protecting the national
interests
 2.b Reporting about the protests
 •Mobilizing power of the Chinese public
 •Transferring the voice of the protests with saving “the Chinese face”
 •Sending the protest voice with maintaining a hope for negotiation
 •Utilizing the prestige of the third party
 2.c Strengthening China’s historical claims
 •Choosing timing for strengthening China’s historical and legal claims and for
highlighting the illegality of Japan’s claims
 •Utilizing the worldwide connection of the state-run media system
2016/6/10

15. China’s media diplomacy in the 2012
anti-Japanese protests
 3. After the protests
 3.a Towards oversea public
 •Using its well-trained diplomats for the battle at the
global level
 3.b Towards Japan and the United States
 •As a tool to maintain communication with the
Japanese government
 •As a channel to dealing with the United States
2016/6/10

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7. Recommendations
 1. Further doing researches on social media to fulfil
the picture of the media’s role in the Islands issue
 2. Expanding the time framework (from 2013 to now)
 3. Exploring whether the media could be a tool to
narrow the gap between the peoples and to de-
escalate the controversy or not.
 4. Further examine and apply the concept of media
diplomacy on more complicated cases such as the
South China Sea issue
Thank you!