Mass Media And International Crisis Management

With the development of the world, the mass media plays more and more important role in international relations. Today, all kinds of international crisis breaks out anywhere and anytime, and people focus on how the mass media functions in the international crisis management increasingly. This master thesis mainly studies two cases——Vietnam War and the"9·11"terrorism attack——to demonstrate how the mass media affects international relations.Firstly, because of the triangle relations among the mass media, the public opinion and the government, the mass media could affect the foreign policy. Secondly, there dose exist complex relationships among the cognition of nation noumenon, the construct of international image, the rebuilding of the international system and the mass media. Thirdly, as the fourth power, the mass media could balance the government power and promote the settlement of the crisis affairs. Lastly, it is beneficial to communicate and cooperate with the mass media once the crisis takes place, or else would generate new crisis.As the very special and important role of mass media acts in international crisis management, the decision-makers should pay enough attention to the mass media and make use of it effectively.I hope my master thesis could draw out more thoughts and studies on the mass media and the international relations.