All governments are waging public relations campaigns to win popular opinion at home and abroad, as are many transnational corporations. This is particularly true of Taiwan, China, India, Japan and South Korea in this increasingly polarized world.
In this age when money talks louder than ever before, China has more channels and resources than other countries to provide a steady flow of information about its objectives and policies. It also appears to be well-placed to win friends and reshape global opinion over the Taiwan question.
Faced with this imbalance of power, Taiwan should pursue better and smarter official public relations to offer accurate information to foreign observers who might be disposed to take a more sympathetic view of the nation.
In particular, Taiwan’s democratization, its embrace of universal values and inclusive politics, and its gradual implementation of transitional justice should attract much international interest. The challenge is how to share the Taiwan story across formal and informal platforms.
A preliminary review of scholarship about Taiwan conducted by specialists in US and European universities reveals a discrepancy between insightful academic findings and their dissemination to the general public. There seems to be a stronger emphasis on Taiwanese history and culture than on its latest democratic accomplishments and cutting-edge technologies.
Therefore, the nation should use innovative methods to better communicate the Taiwan story.
One effective way is to draw on the experiences of Japan, South Korea and China to integrate general knowledge of Taiwan into school and university curricula. The goal is to make the Taiwan story a part of liberal arts education, not a special area of knowledge pursued by privileged elites in Ivy League schools.
Another way to improve media coverage of Taiwan in major newspapers is to arouse public curiosity about the nation. Conventional reporting about Taiwan appears to be sporadic and is usually tucked away in generic coverage on China. There is less interest in Taiwan’s efforts to transform its democracy, protect the environment and preserve its heritage.
If Taiwan is eager to be more visible on the global news landscape, it must nurture future opinion makers and leaders. The nation should create a Taiwanese equivalent of a Fulbright scholarship for international scholarly and cultural exchange.
At a time when Taiwanese universities and vocational colleges are faced with low enrollment, they should not only reach out to Chinese-speaking students from Hong Kong, Macau, China and Southeast Asia, but also open their doors to middle-class and low-income students in the West.
The skills gained by international students participating in Taiwan’s advanced educational system would expand their horizons, giving them first-hand experience of the nation and an appreciation of how it differs from other Chinese polities.
Joseph Tse-Hei Lee is a professor of history at Pace University in New York City.
The Chinese government on March 29 sent shock waves through the Tibetan Buddhist community by announcing the untimely death of one of its most revered spiritual figures, Hungkar Dorje Rinpoche. His sudden passing in Vietnam raised widespread suspicion and concern among his followers, who demanded an investigation. International human rights organization Human Rights Watch joined their call and urged a thorough investigation into his death, highlighting the potential involvement of the Chinese government. At just 56 years old, Rinpoche was influential not only as a spiritual leader, but also for his steadfast efforts to preserve and promote Tibetan identity and cultural
The gutting of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA) by US President Donald Trump’s administration poses a serious threat to the global voice of freedom, particularly for those living under authoritarian regimes such as China. The US — hailed as the model of liberal democracy — has the moral responsibility to uphold the values it champions. In undermining these institutions, the US risks diminishing its “soft power,” a pivotal pillar of its global influence. VOA Tibetan and RFA Tibetan played an enormous role in promoting the strong image of the US in and outside Tibet. On VOA Tibetan,
Former minister of culture Lung Ying-tai (龍應台) has long wielded influence through the power of words. Her articles once served as a moral compass for a society in transition. However, as her April 1 guest article in the New York Times, “The Clock Is Ticking for Taiwan,” makes all too clear, even celebrated prose can mislead when romanticism clouds political judgement. Lung crafts a narrative that is less an analysis of Taiwan’s geopolitical reality than an exercise in wistful nostalgia. As political scientists and international relations academics, we believe it is crucial to correct the misconceptions embedded in her article,
Sung Chien-liang (宋建樑), the leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party’s (KMT) efforts to recall Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Lee Kun-cheng (李坤城), caused a national outrage and drew diplomatic condemnation on Tuesday after he arrived at the New Taipei City District Prosecutors’ Office dressed in a Nazi uniform. Sung performed a Nazi salute and carried a copy of Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf as he arrived to be questioned over allegations of signature forgery in the recall petition. The KMT’s response to the incident has shown a striking lack of contrition and decency. Rather than apologizing and distancing itself from Sung’s actions,
RSS