PR in the East and West: The differences are big

• Source: Global Times
• [11:38 November 04 2009]
• Comments

My guiding philosophy as a PR person is that the reporter comes before anything else, right up there with my clients. I have a commitment to both.

Communications people at Chinese companies have a unique challenge: Many of their executives are uncomfortable dealing with the non-Chinese media, who ask them difficult questions.

Many of these executives are used to telling the local media when they want to meet with them, and have a hard time dealing with foreign media's requests for near-instant access. And they also can be somewhat evasive, preferring to push the reporter's request over to somebody else.

This makes it hard for the PR professional to function effectively, because they have such a hard time getting answers from those above them.

Literally every Western journalist dealing with Chinese companies will tell you that getting information from communications people in China can be like pulling teeth, mainly because they get no management clearance to say anything of substance. Senior management in Chinese companies tend to see PR's role as protecting them from the media, holding pesky reporters at bay, and ac-tually discouraging them from writing about their companies.

Chinese communicators have a lot to learn from the West because so many of them want to reach Western markets. To do this, they need to learn to provide media relations support that delights the journalist while helping the company achieve its goals. They need to learn how to force their spokespeople to be responsive and transparent.

Chinese communications is getting better fast, and considering how far behind they were for so many years.

Many, however, have a lot to learn and it's good to see that they realize this and are striving to improve.

The author is a freelance PR consultant and operates the blog The Peking Duck (pekingduck.org)