Research On The Evolution Of Ge Gongzhen's News Thought

This dissertation is a study on Ge Gongzhen’s journalistic ideology and its evolution.With a special focus on "the evolution of journalistic ideology" that is markedly different from other general studies on journalistic thoughts,it aims to 1)clarify the content and characteristics of Ge Gongzhen’s ideas on journalistic ontology,and 2)trace to the source of Ge’s journalistic ideology and the whole evolutional process of its forming,development and change.The dissertaion is divided into three parts:Part One(Chapter 1)describes Ge’s major journalistic practice and its overall characteristic.Chapter 1 elaborates on Ge’s major journalistic practice under different historical background.(1)Late Qing and Early Republic of China.Born in his hometown,Ge receives a systematic traditional education and makes his journalistic debut in Dongtai Daily in 1912-1913,forming his initial professional awareness of journalism and a self-assurance in editorship;a general introduction of his life,journalistic activities and an outline of the evolution of his journalistic ideology and stance.(2)Beiyang Government(1913-1926).Ge’s 13 years of journalistic practice in Eastern Times.It is subdivided into three stages:a)with Di Chuqing as his mentor,Ge begins his all-around journalistic practice,making his way from an apprentice to editor in chief and distinguished journalist.b)the commercialization of the newspaper during the Huang Bohui period.c)during the May Fourth Movement,he devotes himself in relevant journalistic activities,begins his newspaper study,completes A History of Chinese Newspapers,a signal of the maturity of his journalistic ideology.(3)the initial years of the Nanjing Government(1927-1928).Ge’s major journalistic activities in this period include a)touring Europe and North America to investigate the global newspaper industry;b)joining in Shun Pao to start his modern newspaper practice.(4)Ge’s journalistic activities,centered on the resistance of Japanese aggression and national salvation,in the wake of the 9.18 Incident in 1931,which mainly includes two aspects:a)merging with the progressives of the Life magazine;b)resident in and reporting news of the Soviet Union.Ge Gongzhen’s unexpected death in October 1935 on his return to China and his last words "I am a Chinese" bacomes a historical freeze-frame.Based on these,this chapter holds that Ge’s journalistic life demonstrates three features:1)extraordinary achievements and great journalistic courage;2)a marked characteristic of "evolution with time" of his journalistic practice;3)a journalistic life that contains the thread of his evolutional journalistic ideology,which consists of four stages:a)the initiation period of tradition;b)the period of the forming of journalistic evolutional ideology;c)the period of the exploration of the universalization of journalism;d)the period of socialization after the 9.18 Incident.(Simplified as "tradition","evolution","universalization" and"socialization").Part Two(Chapter 2,3,4)explores in detail the evolutional stages of Ge Gongzhen’s journalistic ideology and expounds the historical context,significance and influence of each stage.Chapter 2 explains the developmental process of Ge’s idea of journalistic evolution,as well as its content,system and source.(1)Ge’s news viewpoint during the "tradition" period and the historical conditions of his shift from the "tradition"period to the "evolution" period;(2)empolying on-line statistics and discourse analysis to prove that Ge’s journalistic ideology is a value system centered on"evolution",which includes:newspaper subjectivity(absolute freedom of speech);public journalism(journalistic axiology);and,the nature of news(journalistic ontology);(3)the six aspects of Ge’s "evolution" ideology:union of journalism;improvement of newspaper legislation;journalistic education;reform in public opinion;improvement of modern editing;internal administration;(4)the source of Ge’s journalistic ideology include:a)Di Chuqing’s idea that "newspaper is the representative of public opinion reform";b)the influence of Liang Qichao’s idea of modern evolution and evolution-centered pespective of history;c)influence of the May Fourth view of evolution centeren on Hu Shi’s viewpoint on "literature evolution";d)the inspiration of journalistic study by such representative early Shanghai newspaperman as Bi Desheng.On the basis of these,this chapter believes that Ge’s shift from the "tradition" stage to the "evolution" stage demonstrates four aspects of social significance:a)examplifying the transformation from traditional literati to professional intellectual;b)providing a continual progressive and mature path of evolution for Chinese newspaper industry;c)providing a integrated public value system for the evolution of newspaper evolution;d)providing a viable path of"newspaper study-newspaper industry-society" for progressive newspaperman.Chaper 3 is a study of Ge’s shift from "evolution" to "universalization".(1)The chapter first expounds the dynamics of Ge’s evolution towards"universalization";his proposition of "newspaper modernization" and its historical context:the cosmopolitism of the May Fourth Era;(2)then,the chapter explains the details of Ge’s idea on journalistic universalization,which include:a)new media of the world;b)the commercialization and capitalization of newspapers;c)resistance of journalistic censorship and the pursuit of a free press;d)the idea of the cooperation and communitization of newspaper;e)ideas on international publicity and the establishment of news agency;(3)finally,the chapter decribes the contradiction and withdrawal of Ge’s "universalization" ideal in reality.Based on these,this chapter holds that because of the delemma of his "universalization" pursuit in reality,Ge Gongzhen has to make self-adjustment and realizes that the root cause of his exploration of modern journalism is the profound contradiction between universal rule and Chinese exception.Chapter 4 is to study Ge’s radical change from journalistic "universalization" to"socialzation".(1)the chapter first discusses the special historical background of Ge’s radical change of journalistic ideology,including the 1929-1933 world economical crisis,which deprives the logical resonableness of newspaper "universalization",and the unpresedented national crisis after the 9.18 Incident,which destroys his faith of the"domestic security first,resistance of foreign agression second" policy of the Kuomingtang Government and paves the way of his acceptance of the socialism ideology.Besides,out of the utter disappointment of the West,he regards the Soviet Union as the only solution of China’s resistance against Japanese aggression and national salvation.(2)then,the chapter goes on to explain the content of Ge’s journalist "socialization",mainly his proposition of public ownership of newspapers;(3)discusses again the deepening of Ge’s thought of "socialization" during his Soviet Union years,and its manifestation in his Correspondence on Soviet Union,which reports in an all-around manner the economical achievements of the Soviet Union to construct the image of "a bright Soviet Union";(4)Ge’s reporting of the Soviet Union is criticized by liberal newpaperman such as Lin Yutang,which reminds us of the degeneration of Ge’s Correspondence on Soviet Union in creating the myth of a socialist public ownership through sheer praise and eulogy while deliberately neglects the negative sides,such as the great famine;(5)however,in fact,Ge undertakes a special mission during his stay in the Soviet Union.Accoding to the "Cipher Telegram from the Russian Border" sent by Ge,recorded in The Diaries of Chiang Kai-Shek,which reveals Soviet military intellegence hostile to China,it is clear that Ge’s reporting of the Soviet Union demonstrates a historical comlexity.He is,first and foremost,a progressive nationalist,a patrotic journalist,with patriotism at the core of all his journalistic activities.Part Three(Pandect)reveals the typical significance and historical influence of the evolution of Ge Gongzhen’s journalistic ideology as well as his status in Chinese journalistic history after his ideological transformation.The author of this dissertation believes that the evolution of Ge Gongzhen’s ideology embodies a typical significance in the following four aspects:(1)he is a typical example of the traditional intellectuals who understand the trends of the world and endeavour to adapt themselves to the constantly changing historical context and ultimately turn into progressive patriots;(2)Ge’s ideology of journalistic evolution marks the height of "bourgeois journalism" and demonstrates a theoretical typicality of journalism during the Republic of China period,and,because it has been criticized by CPC,the representativeness of Ge’s journalistic ideology is even more manifest;(3)his exploration and practice in "the modernization of newspaper" fills a gap in journalistic history;(4)the radical change of Ge’s ideology displays a historical typicality among intellectuals in the 1930s,who are undergoing a radical shift of the priority of the time from enlightenment to national salvation.