Research On Reconstruction Of New Media's Communicative Competence Of Local Government In Emergency

The 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has confirmed the importance of constructing and developing modern communication system to improve the communication capability of the communist party and the Chinese government at a national strategy level. The new media communication capability is a crucial component of governmental communication capability. Enhancing governmental new media communication capability serves as a critical move to strengthen the modernization of national governance system and governance capability.Many emergencies have occurred during the transition period of Chinese society. Essentially speaking, as a special social movement process, emergence is a demonstration of all kinds of tense social conflicts. Emergence has caused more and more severe consequences, and the destructive power of emergency considerably challenges the Chinese government's governance capability. Accompanying with the development of new media communication approaches, the occurrence of emergence and the reacting strategies have all experienced significant changes. Such changes appear in the information production process and communication form, the interaction models between politician and the public, and the governmental governance strategies, resulting in a series of social problems. Emergences often occur at the local level. The local government, shouldering the responsibility of safeguarding social order, becomes the most relevant responsible subject to react to the emergencies. Therefore, the communication capability of local government directly impacts the development and outcome of an emergence. Enhancing and re-building local government's new media communication capability has shown great academic and practical significance.The governmental new media communication refers to the information interactive activities between government, based on its functions and responsibilities, and the public through different media, particularly new media platforms. New media communication is featured by its distinctive purpose and interaction, reflecting the dual distributes of communicating behaviors and governance behaviors. It is an urgent affair to build local government's new media information production capability, information integration capability, information distribution capability and information renovation capability when meeting an emergence. It is also important to note that the new media communication capability in emergence essentially indicates communication skills and approaches. Integrating different platforms and resources to achieve content innovation and platform innovation, new media communication during emergence often yields communication impact, which would also be soft power of the local government.This study focuses on the re-building of local government's new media communication capability during emergence. It considers government as the reacting subject, follows the logic of "emergence-governmental communication-new media", integrates multiple knowledge from politics, communication, sociology, management, marketing and information science, and tightly emphasizes the system frames, organization structure, resources, and operation process of local government. This study aims to uncover local government's practical process and communication pattern during emergence. Using Stampede on the Bund of Shanghai as an example, using methods of content analysis, examining the shortcomings of local governance during emergence, and further exploring the structure and elements of local government's communication capability, this paper tries to put forward strategies and suggestions to improve new media communication capability of local governments.During this emergence, Shanghai local government leverages the advantages of high economic development level and strong media power to integrate all kinds of resources, so as to disseminate formation, policy instruction and accountability. But in the new media communication practice, the information was not timely release, agenda setting ability and guiding force of public opinion was not strong enough, and the participation and interaction between local government and the public was not enough, which involves new media content production, platform construction and local resource integration level.In order to rebuilding local government's new media communication capability, we should strengthen communication competence of content, communication competence of platform, integration competence of local resources and potential of communication effects. The approaches Include the innovation of new media content; the integrated use of new communicaiton technology; integration of local government resources, enhance the ability to integrate information and optimization of emergency communication process, improve the effect of communication influence. On this basis, further improving the relations among local government, new media agencies and public is necessary.This study has six chapters, and the main contents are as follows:Chapter One mainly covers research context, literature review, research questions, research significance and research methods.Chapter Two mainly clarifies the core concepts of emergence, local government and communication capability. It builds up the conceptual system of this study.Chapter Three and Four are mainly case analysis. First, it utilizes the method of case analysis, and deeply examines the typical local emergence, known as " Stampede on the Bund of Shanghai". It also analyzes the main themes and approaches of how local government communicates during emergence. In addition, this study investigates the problems and dilemmas in local government's new media communication during emergence.The Fifth Chapter emphasizes two approaches to re-build the government's new media communication capability:integrated approach (Governance-oriented) and collaborative approach (public service-oriented). Besides, the local government's communication capability is composed of content distribution capability, platform distribution capability, reputation distribution capability and local resources integration capability.Chapter Six proposes optional approaches for our local government to re-build their new media communication capability, based on the review of overseas literature on local government's new media communication capability. It also explores the long-term relationship between building local government, new media and the public, and discusses the development of theories in local government's new media communication.