Multimedia becoming trend in journalism

Multimedia and platform-based communication has become a trendy feature for Chinese media institutions and journalism practitioners, according to a report released on Monday by the All-China Journalists Association.

Since the release of the 2020 edition of The Development of China's News Media, journalism in China has undergone improvements and made progress in the face of challenges and opportunities brought by deeper media convergence, it said.

Traditional media, such as radio, television and newspapers witnessed decelerated growth and continued to focus on deep convergence and digital transformation.

These media outlets have been expanding their mobile internet operations and promoting multimedia expansion, providing news services in different forms on a variety of platforms. New media, including livestreaming and short videos, have become an important driving force of the industry, the report said.

The circulation of printed newspapers continued to shrink while media convergence boosted press revenue, it added.

Newspapers at all levels have been interacting with the public on websites and social media platforms, with new media teams established to develop their own platforms.

The report singled out several newspapers as examples to explain how traditional media outlets are accelerating their convergence into digital domains, including People's Daily, China Daily and Beijing Daily.

English-language newspaper China Daily, for instance, has developed other platforms for its news services, such as an app and social media accounts at home and abroad.

A bilingual documentary launched by China Daily, entitled Looking for Answers: An American Communist Explores China, garnered 45 million views, and 200 citations and reposts by mainstream media overseas, said the report.

Meanwhile, radio and television broadcasters continued to tap the growth of the online audiovisual industry. China Media Group, for instance, has been trying to optimize its multimedia matrix and upgrade its major apps such as Yangshipin.

In the past two years, radio and television broadcasters have kept improving their capacity to provide quality content for global audiences.

In April last year, videos of a herd of wild elephants in Yunnan province heading north went viral all over the world. Many global media outlets followed the herd's journey and some directly used videos produced by Chinese media.

The forms of international cooperation in the production and distribution of audiovisual content are becoming diverse, and media cooperation between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and Arab countries has normalized, according to the report.

News agencies, taking Xinhua as an example, have been creating converged media platforms for international communication and developing think tank products.

In addition, emerging technologies regarding media platforms, data transmission, high-definition videos, artificial intelligence and 5G technology are driving the innovation of the industry, the report added.

These technologies have been applied in covering major events including the COVID-19 pandemic and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games.

The report said the media workforce in China, which involves more than a million people, is becoming younger, better educated and more qualified.

About 44 percent of people working in radio and television broadcasting were younger than 35 while more than 40 percent of employees at Xinhua News Agency had a master's degree or higher.