When I worked as a global media coordinator for the UN several years ago, I organized biweekly conference calls, during which I would ask my colleagues around the world to provide information by particular deadlines. My colleagues almost always responded with a resounding yes, but all too often, the deadlines came and went without the requested material, leaving me bewildered and upset.
Finally, my South African boss had to explain what would never have occurred to me: In many cultures, it is rude to say no. So some people would say yes to anything I asked, regardless of whether they had any intention of delivering.
If communicating internally at the UN was challenging, interacting with the outside world was even harder. How would we reach people in places where newspapers and televisions are still not widely available? How could we generate media coverage in countries where unpaid or underpaid reporters expect “brown envelopes” (full of cash) in exchange for stories?
Communicating globally might require changing the way you interact with both your colleagues and your target audiences. For a book, I spent a year interviewing senior communication professionals in 31 countries about how they help clients modify their messages and strategies for particular cultures. I have found that some of the biggest factors to consider when communicating in a new culture involve emotion, context, conceptions of time and social expectations.
As an example of emotional differences, if I were to do a media interview in the US and become visibly angry at a reporter’s question, I would be seen as unstable. By contrast, in the Middle East, emotional responses are often expected to emotional questions. If you stay cool and calm while discussing a heated issue, you may be viewed as untrustworthy.
Another big cultural difference revolves around the level of “context” provided in a conversation. As an American, I am what is known as a low-context communicator, so if I want something done, I say so bluntly and directly. By contrast, in high-context cultures, as in Asia, people might communicate more subtly. You have to pick up on body language and other contextual cues to realize that your colleague who just said yes to you has actually communicated that she does not agree to your plan.
One of the cultural differences that people find most difficult to cope with is conceptions of time. When I worked in US President Barack Obama’s administration as a spokeswoman for international affairs in the US Department of the Treasury, I once flew with a senior official from Washington to Africa to meet with a head of state. When we arrived for the scheduled meeting, the president was not in the office. My boss was furious because in “monochronic” cultures such as the US, it is expected that people will be prompt and deadlines will be met. However, in “polychronic” cultures, such as in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, plans are less firm and are constantly changing.
A good way to understand expectations in different communities is to make friends with local influencers. In the US, we tend to think of influencers as Hollywood or media celebrities, but in other countries, they may also be imams, the cool kids in a particular township or the village chiefs.
The head of a public relations firm in Malaysia told me that before working in communities there, he would organize a jamuan — a Malay word for a feast — by inviting about 10 villagers to dinner at a local restaurant. In exchange for food, they answered his questions about how he could best promote his telecommunications client in the local community.
I have witnessed firsthand and heard from experts how people from other cultures can take differing paths to achieve similar goals. So today, when I consult for the UN and other clients, I no longer ask my colleagues to meet my deadlines. Instead, I ask what it is possible for them to do, and what they think will work best in their country or culture.
Kara Alaimo is assistant professor of public relations at Hofstra University and author of Pitch, Tweet or Engage on the Street: How to Practice Global Public Relations and Strategic Communication.
‘IN A DIFFERENT PLACE’: The envoy first visited Shanghai, where he attended a Chinese basketball playoff match, and is to meet top officials in Beijing tomorrow US Secretary of State Antony Blinken yesterday arrived in China on his second visit in a year as the US ramps up pressure on its rival over its support for Russia while also seeking to manage tensions with Beijing. The US diplomat tomorrow is to meet China’s top brass in Beijing, where he is also expected to plead for restraint as Taiwan inaugurates president-elect William Lai (賴清德), and to raise US concerns on Chinese trade practices. However, Blinken is also seeking to stabilize ties, with tensions between the world’s two largest economies easing since his previous visit in June last year. At the
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese
RIVER TRAGEDY: Local fishers and residents helped rescue people after the vessel capsized, while motorbike taxis evacuated some of the injured At least 58 people going to a funeral died after their overloaded river boat capsized in the Central African Republic’s (CAR) capital, Bangui, the head of civil protection said on Saturday. “We were able to extract 58 lifeless bodies,” Thomas Djimasse told Radio Guira. “We don’t know the total number of people who are underwater. According to witnesses and videos on social media, the wooden boat was carrying more than 300 people — some standing and others perched on wooden structures — when it sank on the Mpoko River on Friday. The vessel was heading to the funeral of a village chief in