About

Connecting the creative and culture industries in China and the UK
连结中英两国文化创意产业的纽带

CMC Brochure English

Established 2005 to be Europe’s centre for the world’s largest media system, the Centre (CMC) now has 2 Professors, 2 x Post-Docs (1xRCUK), KT Manager and Admin Aide plus part-timers. CMC has four main achievements:

Created a high performing research field:

Researchers publish on topics which vary from policy and regulation to magazine publishing to TV drama content. There are (2009) 7 x PhDs and 13 Visiting Scholars from collaborating institutions. CMC is part of Westminster’s Communications & Media Research Institute, judged best in the UK for media and communications in the latest RAE, December 2008.

Knowledge Transfer (‘3rd stream’):

CMC earns fees from collaborative projects with the State Council of the PRC and the FCO (Public Diplomacy Challenge Fund), International Media Support (Danish Government) and from consultancy on UK creative industries to Shanghai Media Group, Hunan Satellite Broadcasting etc.

Ambassadorship & Knowledge Transfer:

Among many events have been 5 conferences in Parliament 2007: The China Impact: The Westminster Hearings on China’s Economic Development and the UK

For academic and public events we have cooperated with the BBC, Annenberg School, Queensland University of Technology and other overseas institutions.

Scheduled for 2009 are events on the public understanding of the environment and the media roles therein in Parliament and at Wilton Park (FCO).

Internationalisation:

CMC is a focal point for MA students who come from China yearly to take media courses, as well as Visiting Lecturers and Researchers. There is an MA module The Chinese Media in the New World Order and a new BA Journalism with Chinese/Arabic Language is in hand. A 2+1 MA with a Chinese partner is launched and a Summer School starts 2009. Helping to set up Indian Media Centre.

中国传媒中心成立于2005年,是欧洲致力于中国这一世界最大传媒市场研究的核心学术机构。中国传媒中心由两名教授及其领导下的两名博士后(其中一位为英国研究理事会成员),一名项目经理及行政人员(部分为兼职)组成。

中国传媒中心的全球影响力主要体现在四个方面:

1.搭建高水平的科研平台。

中国传媒中心的科研团队在多个领域有所著述,从媒介政策与监管到杂志发行再到电视戏剧内容分析。目前中国传媒中心有七名博士生及来自合作科研机构的十三名 访问学者。中国传媒中心隶属与威斯敏斯特大学媒体、艺术与设计学院,该学院在全英2008年12月进行的科研考评(RAE)中排名第一。

2.知识转换(“第三流运动”)

中国传媒中心与中国国务院、英国外交与联邦事务部(公共外交挑战基金)、国际传媒援助(丹麦政府)以及诸多英国媒介创意产业的顾问公司合作,为上海传媒集团及湖南卫视等开展培训。

3.外交使命及知识转换

2007 年中国传媒中心在英国议会举办了题为“中国影响力:中国经济发展与英国”的5场系列听证会。同时还与BBC,宾夕法尼亚大学新闻学院以及昆士兰技术大学等 诸多全球的科研机构合作,开展科研项目。2009年,中国传媒中心在英国议会及英国外交与联邦事务部(沃尔顿公园)举办了以“公众对环境问题的理解及传媒 角色”为题的研讨会。

4.国际化

中国传媒中心的服务对象还包括每年来自中国的学习传媒专业的研究生,客座讲师及研究人员。中国传媒中心为硕士生开展的课程为《新世界秩序下的的中国媒 体》,同时,为本科生开展的以中文进行授课的《新闻学》也正在筹办中。中国传媒中心开展的项目还包括与中国合作伙伴合作的2+1研究生课程及自2009年 开办的暑期学校。

点此下载课程手册,欲知课程详情,敬请联系我们)

CMC info pack for 2010 课程手册


PRESENT POSITION

The China Media Centre was launched by BBC’s Jeremy Paxman and Sun Yusheng, Deputy President of China Central Television, on 17 June 2005.

It comprises a team of researchers, led by Professor Hugo de Burgh, Director of the China Media Centre with expertise in

  • - Chinese media policy
  • - Professionalism in media management
  • - New media
  • - Journalism in Chinese society and polity
  • - Television programming and
  • - Magazine publishing
  • - Modern Chinese cultural change

and the Knowledge Transfer Manager, Alja Kranjec, with part-time paid admin and marketing backup from students.

Intimately involved in the Centre and its activities is Professor Colin Sparks, who, though not a China specialist is very knowledgeable about the Chinese media and has a high reputation in China. Increasingly involved is development economics specialist Professor Paul Reynolds.

The Centre’s activities to date include:

  • Research and publication in academic conferences and journals
  • Knowledge Transfer
  • London-wide academic seminars on China
  • Conferences and Seminars for leading UK decision-makers
  • Presentations and networking events for visiting Chinese officials
  • Events for MAD master and bachelor students from China, in London
  • MAD alumni events in China
  • Development of Third-party relationships

Original idea

The CMC was originally conceived of as a small centre of university research into Chinese media in the conventional, narrow, sense. It was to contribute to the RAE but also it was hoped that it might be able to earn enough money through ‘consultancy’ to become self sustaining. The Quintin Hogg Trust was prepared to fund it for 5 years.

Achievements to date

The CMC has been particularly successful in

(1) making its mark as a source of knowledge about China,

(2) managing the Westminster Hearings in Parliament

(3) attracting Knowledge Transfer contracts

(4) cooperating with Chinese institutions

The CMC is very well networked in the China policy world in the UK and the media scene in China.

Organisations with which we are working in China

  • * Hunan Broadcasting, China (2 projects completed)
  • * State Council Information Office (SCIO) (2 projects completed)
  • * Shanghai Media Group (SMG) (1 project completed)
  • * Southern Media Group (1 project completed)
  • * FCO public diplomacy challenge fund (1 project completed)
  • * Shenzhen Media Group (1 project completed)
  • * China Central Television (CCTV) (prospect – Hugo de Burgh did a public lecture there for marketing purposes)
  • * Communication University of China (CUC) where Colin Sparks is a Visiting Professor
  • * Tsinghua University – Colin Sparks and Hugo de Burgh have honorary positions here. de Burgh is a visiting professor and spent three months at Tsinghua early 2007; he has just been appointed to the Advisory Board of Tsinghua, representing Western Europe.
  • * Shandong University where Hugo de Burgh is a Visiting Professor and Geoffrey Davies a Visiting Lecturer

Research (Academic)

Individually, members of CMC (Lecturers, Post-Doctoral Fellows, PhD candidates) have interesting research projects and publication track records, which are contributing to the Research Unit’s score.

Professional Briefings

The CMC has carried out a number of highly profitable professional training courses for senior members of Chinese government and media organisations:

Foreign & Commonwealth Office – Public Diplomacy Challenge Fund project

Organised by the CMC in conjunction with the FCO and Tsinghua University. Paid for by the FCO

- 5 workshops held around China

- Attended by journalists, senior press and propaganda officers from a wide range of Chinese central and local government organisations and the Beijing Olympics Committee

- UK journalists were also involved, including: Jonathan Watts the Guardian’s Beijing correspondent; and Nick Mackie the BBC correspondent based in Chongqing

- A group of 10 senior Chinese officials was also attending a course in London

State Council Information Office

- The State Council of the People’s Republic of China is the highest executive organ of State power, as well as the highest organ of State administration

- CMC was asked to deliver high level briefings on UK Government media relations to senior members of the SCIO staff in London to learn about how the British government deals with the media

- Visited senior UK media handlers, Downing Street and the BBC

Hunan Broadcasting

- Professional training courses covering creativity and innovation in television

- 2 held in the UK

Southern Media Group (TVS)

- Professional training course for journalists and TV broadcasters

- Covering new trends in documentary making in Britain

Shanghai Media Group (SMG)

- Creativity and Innovation in Television: A Special Short Course for the Shanghai Media Group

Events

The Centre runs a large number of events

The Centre runs seminars:

  • * Academic seminars in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008 (some were organised jointly with the Centre of Chinese Studies, SOAS) All held in Regent Street and open to postgraduates of any college or university
  • * ‘The China Impact Seminars’, March-April 2005, in the Carlton Club
  • * 11, Downing Street seminars (produced content for the ‘Valuing China’ Smith Institute Seminars, held in the home of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, 2005 & 2006
  • * Westminster Hearings, 2007. See appendix for datasheet publicising the events
  • * Modernisation, Modernity & the Media in China- in June 2006
  • * Half-day CMC seminar – “Chinese Media & Society”- in November 2005, speakers included Professor Guo Zhenzhi from Tsinghua University and Dr. Cao Qing from Liverpool John Moores University.
  • * “Opportunities and Obstacles for Foreign Media in China” and “Media and Culture Industry Changesin the Age of Pre-and Post- Party Congress”, Dr Hu Zhengrong, December 2007

Third party relationships

The Centre has developed relationships with the following organizations and individuals:

  • * McKinsey & Co. – knowledge partner for the Westminster Hearings
  • * Great Britain China Centre – Katie Lee (Director)
  • * Ben Chapman MP – Chair, All Party Parliamentary Group on China
  • * Peter Luff MP – Chair, Trade and Industry Select Committee
  • * Chinese Embassy
  • * Smith Institute – Director Wilf Stevenson is, like Hugo de Burgh, a former colleague of the present Prime Minister.
  • * Chatham House & Strategic China Ltd. (Kerry Brown)
    • de Burgh appointed an honorary fellow of the influential 48 Group in 2007
    • Good contacts with various members, including Chairman of the 48 Group, Stephen Perry

PLAN

CMC is about to be expanded with new posts and scope. The original premises upon which the CMC was founded are that

1. The University has a media school justifiably claiming to be a leader of both research and professional formation for journalism in particular and the media generally

2. The University of Westminster has longstanding connections with Chinese media institutions

3. The media are enormously important elements of the Chinese political establishment and, as such, provide opportunities for understanding Chinese society and its decision makers

These premises still hold good. But we should now extend our appreciation to the new ways in which Westminster’s particularities may be turned to good account in the relations between China and the UK.

We will expand the concept of media to include the culture and creative industries, in which our parent School, Media, Arts & Design is a leading educator.

China is already promoting these industries nationwide and seeking knowledge abroad; all major cities have, or are developing, policies aimed at driving the culture and creative industries by

  • · Changing education
  • · Building infrastructure
  • · Seeking international experience
  • · Realizing economic value of culture
  • · Encouraging creativity and innovation
  • · Funding research projects
  • · Providing think tanks.

Furthermore, China’s leading universities, Tsinghua and Peking, with both of which CMC has good connections, have centres focusing on the culture and creative industries.

Over several years, UK Government has put resources into the ‘economicisation’ of these industries and stressed their value to London in particular; emphasized the benefits of trade and cultural relations with China to the UK, and London especially.

The Australian government has funded Queensland University of technology to act as the conduit between the sector in China and Australia, an investment which has both yielded worthwhile academic product and led to the establishment of business joint ventures and increased cultural contacts.

In this climate, and given that the China Media Centre is located within the School of Media, Arts and Design, it is logical to extend our interests into this sector, rather than restrict ourselves to a narrow and conventional understanding of ‘Media’.

Already we have colleagues in other areas of the School and the University who either already are working in the sector with China, or could and would easily do so, with CMC help. Their specialisms include:

  • · Photography
  • · Recorded music
  • · Animation
  • · Media management
  • · Journalism
  • · PR
  • · IT (esp video games)
  • · Intellectual property
  • · Fashion
  • · Other areas with potential
  • · Architecture
  • · Film
  • · Advertising
  • · Magazine publishing

The University is currently considering how best to build upon the successes of the CMC to invest in its expansion into these fields in order to ensure continuing achievement.

Biographies of current staff

Hugo de Burgh

Director, CMC; Professor of Journalism

Worked as a Television Journalist for 15 years; 10 years as a media academic before joining the University in 2004. Aside from academic books on journalism and Chinese media, he has published a commercial book, China Friend or Foe? and will in 2009 publish a book on the future of our country in ‘the age of China’.

Alja Kranjec

Knowledge Transfer Manager, China Media Centre

B.Sc. (Hons) in Japanology and a B.Sc. (Hons) Sinology. Scholarship from the Japanese Government. Translator in Slovenia and worked on 16th Biennial Conference of the European Association of Chinese Studies 2006. Actively involved in management of the Westminster Hearings. Manages courses for visiting Chinese officials and major contracts with partner organisations, providing support for research projects, courses events carried out by the CMC, including management of casual staff members, coordinating translation and other research-related activities; keeping accounts. Devising work plans.

Dr Zeng Rong

Responsible for maintaining contacts with Chinese institutions