Publicity strategies and media logic: communication campaigns of environmental NGOs in China

Abstract

In today’s increasingly mediated Chinese societies, non-government organizations (NGOs) play significant roles in civil society. This article examines the publicity strategies and media logic used by environmental NGOs (ENGOs) in advancing their normative aims and advocacy operations. In-depth interviews with four different kinds of ENGOs showed that divergent philosophies of publicity and normative aims – whether focused largely on approaching policy-makers, lobbying entrepreneurs, or attracting and educating mass audiences – shape campaign styles that are operationalized as campaign discourses, communication strategies, and audience orientations, as well as the management of the relationship to the state. This article proposes that the diverse and stratified publicity strategies used by ENGOs are effective in strengthening their ability to develop environmental campaigns and conduct advocacy work.

Keywords:

• Chinese NGO
• environmental NGOs
• publicity strategy
• media use

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the editors and three anonymous journal reviewers for their detailed editing and helpful comments on the article.

Notes

1. Wang Yongcheng, founder of Green Earth Volunteers, is a former journalist for The Central People's Broadcasting Station. Liao Xiaoyi, founder of the Global Village, is a former producer of the “Green Time" program on CCTV Channel 7. The founder of Friends of Nature, Mr. Liang Congjie, recruited journalists as members of the organization. There were 100 journalist-members at the time.

2. Clampdown in China restricts 7,000 foreign organizations. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/29/world/asia/china-foreign-ngo-law.html.

3. Oil spill in Dalian, China (2010, July 21). Retrieved from http://archive.boston.com/bigpicture/2010/07/oil_spill_in_dalian_china.html.

4. Coal impacts on water (2014, March 21). Retrieved from http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/coal/Water-impacts/.