Construction Of Cross-cultural Communication And The Olympic Bid Film Image Of The Country

"The visual turn" in nowadays society reflects not only a shift of cultural "paradigm" but a transition of ideology as well. Through analyzing a classic example, the Promo bid for 2008 Olympics, this article explores the construction of national image in a cross-cultural communication context and reveals the roles ideology hidden in visual-cultural text, such as Post-Colonialism, nationalism play in manufacturing national images in a global context. This article includes foreword, five chapters and a conclusion. In chapter 1, theory relative to the research is discussed. On one side, analytical method in visual-cultural communication includes semeiology, ideology theory and the Study on Film & TV. On the other side, theory in cross-cultural communication refers to colonial and postcolonial cultural criticism, cultural intermixing, cultural construction and identity theory. Using analytical methods in visual culture, chapter 2 reveals the "emotional structure" of "culture superiority" and "vision sycophancy" conveyed in the Promo bid for Olympics through a deep analysis of the promo in London, Beijing and New York. Chapter 3 studies the visual representation of national images and summarizes prime examples of national and ethnic images in promo bid for Olympics. There are five elements: compaction, landscape, empathy, routine and cordiality. Special themes on national images in promo involve urban landscape, rural folklore culture, children and youth, and assembly and celebration. Chapter 4 describes a series of problems, such as modernity and tradition in promo bids for Olympics, state and civic discourses, popular and elites cultures, colonial and postcolonial cultural intermixing, which results from the history of postcolonial immigration, the separation of culture from polity, and the replacement of industrial and consumption society. Chapter 5 analyzes how the government and the media of the host and guest countries construct their national and ethnic identity. Finally, the article maintains that national image constructed via the media in cross-cultural communication is not the objective representation of national status quo. It is not only restricted by media power but also under the control of economic interest and ideology. By means of visual symbol representation, the mass media influence public opinion and "project" national images on the audience's minds.