The Status Quo And The Development Of External Reports Based On China's English News Websites

China's external reports have been faced with series of difficulties for a long time, which results from the weak national strength, the limited popularity of the Chinese language in the world, the limited effectiveness of mass media in the international community, etc. Nevertheless, Xinhua News Agency, China Radio International, China Daily and China Central Television International play important roles in China's external reports with the identity of agency, radio, newspaper and television respectively. However, these traditional media haven't brought the functions of external reports into full play due to the limitation of status, publication, and audience rate.With the advent of the Internet in China, the Internet is becoming a new medium. In the 21^st century, the Internet is gradually becoming one of the best media for China's external reports. Meanwhile, English is a popular language around the world; English news websites naturally exert the special significance in China's external report. English news websites possess the functions of integrating information, guiding public opinion, educating, entertaining and special service, etc. Through external report, China's English news websites can set up a sound national image, improve the general trust of China's English media in the world and solve the problem that the foreign audience can hardly contact with China's traditional media. Nowadays, China's English news websites are consisting of the central type and the local type. In this dissertation, the writer just takes 4 English news websites with central authority for the subjects, namely, the websites of Xinhua News agency, China Radio International, China Daily and China Central Television International. These websites integrate the information sources from their own matrix, exert the advantages of the Internet and bring external report to a new field. Therefore, it's meaningful to explore the status quo and the development of external reports, on the basis of China's typical English news websites in global information times.Through the sampling analysis of top stories on 4 English news websites in 2006, the writer employs SPSS software to analyze the characteristics of nowadays' external reports in China and draws conclusions that the color of political propaganda has been lighten; more importance has been attached to international news; neutral reports constitute the majority in home news, while negative reports are dominant in international news; breaking news in China has been covered more timely and comprehensively. Meanwhile, some shortcomings are found in China's external reports. First, similar agendas are set on English news websites and in-depth reports are not enough; Second, more and more soft news are entertainmentized; Third, critical reports are unbalanced between home news and international news; Fourth, Chinese English are dominant in news reports, while historical backgrounds of China are insufficiently introduced.In 21^st century, information hegemony makes the West media control the public opinion of the world. It is researched that there are few foreign audience contacting with China's English media; foreign audience take skeptical attitudes towards China's English media; external reports are encountering with technical difficulties. Faced with these embarrassments, China's external reports can explore the new ways in the Internet era. Finally, the writer gives some approaches to China's external reports in future.