China's media and journalism industry races to embrace new technology

At a forum in Jiangsu province earlier this week, about 100 media leaders from Hong Kong, Macau, mainland China and Taiwan shared their practical experiences on the impact of the latest technology trends on the industry and how to cope with them.

Media professionals attending the forum. Photo: Denise Tsang

Some news publishers from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau say they are caught between trying to capitalize on growth opportunities like artificial intelligence (AI) while balancing risks and adapting to changing reader behavior.

Meanwhile, representatives in mainland China say they have overcome these barriers through experimentation and learning, and they are keen to develop business models to make the use of new technologies financially sustainable.

"Technology is a double-edged sword that not only revolutionizes the media but also increases disinformation and thus makes it difficult to identify disinformation," said Professor Wang Runze from the school of journalism and communication at Renmin University of China. "Media practitioners should not rely too much on technology. Instead, they should return to the original value of media."

Macau Lotus Satellite Media Director Li Zisong said that technology is developing both positively and negatively. "Some people say this is the worst era because news is affected by many new technologies. But this is also the best era because news companies can use new technologies to revive their operations and expand their readership," he said.

Professor Clement So York-kee from the school of journalism and communication at the Chinese University of Hong Kong called for reporters to embrace new technology, people to be more discerning about misinformation, media companies to restructure their workflows, and society to establish more fact-checking tools.

Privately owned news outlets also say they are struggling to make a profit amid the huge amount of information freely available on social media.

Macau Daily News has rolled out a series of initiatives to retain readers and tap new revenue streams, by increasing the amount of content produced, launching a mobile app and social media accounts, and charging for some content.

According to Guo Changxiong, editor-in-chief of Suzhou Broadcasting System, AI will not replace reporters, but instead, it can unleash the potential and manpower of staff for higher-level jobs. "Now, one staff can do the jobs that used to require 2-3 people," said Mr. Guo.

Ngoc Anh (according to SCMP)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/nganh-truyen-thong-va-bao-chi-trung-quoc-chay-dua-nam-bat-cong-nghe-moi-post300247.html