SISU-supported international communication project wins national award

An international communication project supported by the School of Journalism and Communication (SJC) of Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) received a national award for its innovative exploration on constructing a global discourse system.

The project features the SISU-Songjiang Global Communication Innovation Hub, which was jointly launched by SJC and Shanghai Songjiang Media Center on Oct. 14, 2020. The project aims at training journalism professionals and improving the ability to tell China’s story well in an international context.

The global communication hub includes a business incubator and eight laboratories, where scholars can use big data and AI to analyze international public opinion and give advice on improving China’s international discourse. The hub innovated the mode of cooperation between a media outlet and a university and provided a platform for students of SJC to integrate theories with practice.

Based on the cooperation framework, SJC and Songjiang Media Center also launched China’s first district-level English news channel on the Shanghai Songjiang app. Students and teachers from SJC have produced around 500 original works for the channel by the end of November. Every article or video will be checked three times to ensure they can give the foreign readers an insight into Songjiang.

In accordance with a cooperation agreement signed in February 2019 by SISU and the Publicity Department of CPC Shanghai Committee, SJC is given various chances and thus is committed to training high-caliber professionals for the country’s international communication cause. Through the English channel platform, for example, students can carry out down-to-earth researches, which can help them know more about China’s actual conditions and meanwhile train them to be globally minded.

Under the co-construction system, both sides can achieve deep integration and coordinated development. For example, editors from the Songjiang Media Center can receive professional courses offered by SJC. They can continuously improve their proficiency immersed in the frontier academic atmosphere of international communication. In the future, SISU will make full use of its advantages in global communication studies and multi-lingual journalistic education to assist the media in Shanghai, thus improving the city’s capability of international communication and enhancing China’s global discourse.