Telling China's story through reports on major manned space activities: A case study of the coverage of Shenzhou spacecraft in Chinese and Western media

Abstract

The Shenzhou spacecraft have been independently developed by China, and the country has complete intellectual property rights to this technology. The spacecraft are examples of China's achievements in space technology, are representative of the country having reached or surpassed international technological standards for third-generation manned spacecraft, and have garnered widespread interest among international media and audiences. Our study found that there are many differences between Chinese and Western media in their coverage of this major topic. China's reporting system on this issue is well established but still has room for improvement. Western media have considered both positive and negative angles when reporting on this issue, and that deserves attention. In these circumstances, it is important for China to improve its communicators, communication content, information release mechanisms, narrative style and response mechanism through targeted measures, such as cultivating new communicators, developing new content and minimizing cultural discounts in cross-cultural communication in order to enhance China's voice on the world stage.