Current international communication efforts have moved from simply “going out” to a new stage of “going in”. How to carry out precise communication for different regions, countries, groups and even individuals, satisfy the diversified information needs of the international community for China's story, provide China's thinking and solutions to all kinds of international problems, and thus create a new mechanism for multilateral communication among multiple subjects and explore new paths for shaping international consensus have become the new requirements for international communication to go deeper and deeper into the realm of reality. In this context, international communication capacity building needs to make full use of the knowledge base of regional and country studies to explore new theoretical and practical paradigms of one policy for one region, one policy for one country and even one policy for one group of countries; at the same time, regional and country studies should also make full use of the research results of the international communication field on transnational media and global public opinion, so as to incorporate the ever-accelerating process of mediatization into the research agenda. The “bidirectional running” of international communication and regional country studies should become an interdisciplinary support for telling China's story well, enhancing international discourse and building a community of human destiny.
What is the intrinsic link between international communication and regional country studies? How can international communication scholars draw on, and even enter, regional country studies? How do regional country scholars view media and communication? How can scholars in the two fields cross-collaborate to promote the theory and practice of international communication? In response to these questions, the Research Group on Practical Issues and Localized Theoretical Innovation of International Communication in China in the New Era of the Communication University of China (CUC), together with the Institute of Contemporary China and World Studies of the Foreign Languages Bureau of China (FBOC), has organized a discussion among experts on the potential and challenges of this “two-way street”. The discussion will also provide a cross-disciplinary perspective for the construction of an autonomous knowledge system of international communication in the new era.
Relevance and intersection of international communication studies and regional country studies
Ji DeQiang：Although the disciplinary attributes of the two fields are different and the degree of institutionalization varies, they have an inescapable intrinsic connection and a high degree of intersectionality in terms of theories, knowledge genealogy and research topics. At a time when the study of international accurate communication has become a strategic need, we should re-examine the relationship between regional country studies and international communication, go beyond the research perspective of “you are you and I am me”, and enter into the logical system of cross-fertilization of “you have me and I have you”. Deepening the interaction between the basic theories of the two and constructing a more complete and self-consistent research paradigm will not only help regional national studies to extend the logic of mediatized thinking, but also enable international communication studies to keenly perceive the communication and media ecology of different regional countries, and to seek a new concept and new pattern of international communication that is “harmonious and different, beautiful and common” under the premise of respecting and observing regional differences. The new concepts and patterns of international communication should be pursued with respect for and observation of regional differences.
Driven by the combination of policy agendas and practical processes, international communication research has become the most cutting-edge applied cross-cutting field. However, in terms of its academic history, the long Cold War background and the post-Cold War transition have made international communication a potential for interdisciplinary intellectual innovation; for China nowadays, international communication has become an important position for positional awakening, academic self-consciousness, and practical self-sufficiency, laden with the imagination of the transition from theory to practice. For China nowadays, international communication has also become an important position for self-awareness, academic consciousness and self-reliance in practice, loaded with imagination from theory to practice. How to shift from the linear thinking of “going out” to the non-linear thinking of “going in”, from the egocentrism of image construction to the interlocking logic of relationship construction, and from purely serving the national interest to promoting the overall interest of building a community of human destiny, the establishment and development of regional country studies provides an important opportunity for the development of international communication in China. From merely serving national interests to promoting the overall interests of building a community of human destiny, the establishment and development of regional country studies has provided important theoretical and methodological support. It is important to note that as another cross-cutting and integrative field of study, regional country studies is not linked to international communication studies as a whole, but rather has a greater potential for cross-fertilization of the most relevant aspects of media, communication, public opinion, culture, etc. In other words, those aspects that have a direct impact on international communication studies are not necessarily the same as those of international communication studies. In other words, those dimensions of knowledge that have a direct impact on the ecology of public opinion, the decoding of meaning, and ideological encounters are more relevant to the theory and practice of international communication. In this sense, the intersection of international communication and regional country studies needs to be based on specific issues to find the closest relevance, otherwise it will easily fall into blind or even instrumental mutual utilization, which is even more detrimental to the growth and development of each.
Chen Xulong：Both can be categorized in the field of international studies, both have a prominent foreign dimension, and both cover the political, security, economic, cultural and ecological aspects of international relations, which require multidisciplinary intersections in order to bear academic fruit. It is important to note that the two disciplines are intrinsically linked and that their interrelationships can be positively constructed as a matter of course, in an effort to enhance the interconnectedness and intersectionality of the two disciplines, so as to make the two disciplines mutually reinforcing and complementary, and to promote their respective development and common progress.
Guo Jinyue：Both international communication and regional country studies are concerned with foreign countries as opposed to domestic ones. Theoretically speaking, regional country studies divide the world into “chunks”. The United Nations has 193 Member States, and the world can be divided into a varying number of regions according to different criteria, which are the object of study of regional country studies. International communication studies, on the other hand, divides the world into “strips”. In addition to international communication, there are also international trade, international education and international history, etc. Transnational information transfer issues are the focus of international communication studies. In today's era of unprecedentedly close links between countries and regions, and high-speed transnational flow of information, the boundaries between country-specific and international studies are becoming increasingly blurred. In order to balance local specificity and global consistency, and to recognize and transform the external world more comprehensively and effectively, the disciplines must be cross-fertilized and “integrated”. Specifically in China, international communication research and regional and country-specific research are both aimed at promoting exchanges and mutual understanding between Chinese and foreign civilizations, and promoting the building of a community of human destiny. Good regional and country studies can lay the knowledge foundation for effective international communication, while good international communication studies can help to promote and deepen understanding of the countries and regions concerned, and they complement each other in a mutually beneficial way.
Zhang Qi：My professional background is in sociology and anthropology, and my field of practice is in the international news media, so I have a deep appreciation for this issue. In my opinion, international communication and regional country studies are both disciplines born for application, and their relevance lies firstly in the consistency of purpose, and secondly in the difference of focus. The subject of both international communication and regional country studies is “I” (or China), and the object of study involves the “other” (or other countries), with the same purpose of establishing a better connection between the subject and the other, or a connection that is favorable to me. The purpose is the same, but due to changes in the general environment and the needs of the subjects, there is a shift in the frontiers of academic concern from international communication to regional country studies. The difference between the two centers of gravity is reflected in the research perspective, the former to me as the main, the latter to him as the main; the second is reflected in the object of research, the former to information dissemination as the main, the latter to the social form as the main. Only from the point of view of the research object, in the current information age, the intersection between international communication and regional country studies is also obvious and indisputable. The more highly developed the region or country is in terms of information technology and social life, the deeper the overlap between the two. On the contrary, in regions or countries where IT is less developed, the difference between the two is more obvious. In my cross-country surveys, I pay close attention to a country's Internet penetration rate, and if it is below 67%, I am cautious about using online methods or analyzing online sample data. In addition, some anthropological research that is oriented towards other cultures has relevance and intersections with the two disciplines mentioned above, but the disciplinary aims and research interests are different. Anthropological research focuses on understanding the Other to the greatest extent possible, and does not hesitate to use the costly and long-term field research method of becoming the Other. Both the methodology of anthropological research itself and the results already available can be of great help to international communication and regional country studies.
Communication in the perspective of regional country studies
Chen Xulong：This begins with the necessity and importance of international dissemination for regional country studies. First, international dissemination of knowledge and information is needed for regional country studies to understand facts and truths and as one of the necessary means to build a relevant knowledge system; second, international dissemination is indispensable for regional country studies to have an international impact and to increase their international utility; third, international dissemination, both positive and negative, can have both positive and negative effects on regional country studies, thus affecting the process and results of the studies. Thus, it can be considered that the most important and urgent issue facing regional and country studies is to take the initiative to effectively combine and actively integrate with international communication, make good use of traditional mass media, but also keep up with the pace of the times in the development of communication, make good use of new media such as the Internet, social media and artificial intelligence to carry out research, and strengthen the international dissemination of the research results, so as to magnify their positive effects.
Guo JinYue：In a communication sense, regional country studies face at least two problems. The first is access to information. The goal of the study is to gain a comprehensive and in-depth understanding of the overall situation in the target country, and the prerequisite is to have information on all aspects of the target country. Since the research object is abroad, the basic source of information is also abroad, obtaining, screening and utilizing these research materials transmitted across the border is the key to good regional country studies. This involves not only language translation, but also cross-cultural communication and communication technology, etc. Secondly, it is the external expression. The conduct of regional country studies generally requires communication and interaction with research subjects, which is also the process of international communication. For example, when a researcher goes to the local area of the research object to conduct an investigation, his speech and behavior convey a certain attitude, and at this time, the researcher is also a disseminator. Some researchers' writings even influence the self-perception of the target country. For example, French political thinker and historian Alexis de Tocqueville's On Democracy in America and famous American cultural anthropologist Ruth Benedict's The Chrysanthemum and the Knife have attracted widespread attention in the United States and Japan respectively. In today's era of information explosion and emerging media, how to obtain more comprehensive information about the research object and express the research object more effectively in regional country studies is an issue that needs special attention.
Ji Deqiang：The study of media or media has always been the specialty of mass communication, and it is also the key to international communication research, which has mass communication as its core field, addressing the reach of communication and its multifaceted impact on the target audience. Of course, with the addition of multiple perspectives, international communication studies have also begun to deal with interpersonal, organizational, group and even human-computer interactions, with the enrichment of technological, cultural and power perspectives, and with dissemination, communication, negotiation and conflict all coming together to form the complex purpose of international communication.
From the perspective of communication studies, regional country studies need to deal with two aspects: first, the public opinion environment and media system in a given region and country, and analyze them in relation to the political system, cultural traditions, social structure, economic situation, geopolitical relations, etc., and the media, although not the most central element, is an important representational or discursive force; and second, the accelerating digitization process, especially the systemic impact of Internet-based social applications and artificial intelligence technologies on a given region and country, such as social movements triggered by the large-scale use of social media. Second, the accelerating digitalization process, especially the systematic impact of Internet-based social applications and artificial intelligence technologies on specific regions and countries, such as social movements triggered by the large-scale use of social media. In other words, regional country studies themselves are in need of a mediatization and digital transformation, fully recognizing that the media is no longer a separate and closed sector of industry, but rather a foundational and even reconfiguring force in society.
Of course, from the point of view of academic history, we need to be constantly alerted to the fact that both international communication and area studies are representative of the social sciences of the Cold War. Of these, the early forms of area studies can be traced back to Orientalism, which originated in Europe as an act of knowledge production in which the West constructed the East. As Orientalism could no longer meet the needs of the United States in its quest for global cultural hegemony in a completely different context after World War II, area studies came into being. It can be said that the regional studies centered on the United States after World War II was a kind of “study of great powers” with Cold War colors. By the same token, international communication played the role of the knowledge worker of the capitalist powers in the Cold War social sciences dominated by the United States, no matter whether it was the development communication paradigm in the early stage or the globalization paradigm in the later stage. Looking back at this academic history from China's historical perspective, international communication needs to transcend the relationship of simple games, and regional and national countries also need to transcend the role of a great power's weapon; the purpose of the intersection of the two is to better promote mutual understanding and to reach more consensus based on respect for difference and diversity, rather than to seek irrational feedback and control effects.
Zhang Qi：Cultural anthropology will make many fundamental contributions to regional country studies, the most typical case being The Chrysanthemum and the Sword. The study of international politics will add to the applied value of regional country studies, which are indispensable for foreign affairs-related departments. Communication concerns will play an increasingly important role in our regional and country studies, a conclusion based on the confidence that the changes of the information age will eventually sweep across the globe. I believe that the most pressing issue is the study of the characteristics of information dissemination in the target countries, and the most important issue is the study of the media audience in the target countries, both of which are, to some extent, mutually reinforcing.
If a comparison is made between traditional and emerging media, it must be that more emphasis needs to be placed on emerging media. The rapid development of emerging media has brought about constant changes in all countries at the level of society as a whole. To what extent is the public opinion environment in a given country or region dominated by which emerging media forces? Do and how do the issues disseminated in the emerging media space influence national political and social behavior? How do changes in media communication affect changes in socio-cultural and popular psychology? The answers to these questions are both enriching and instructive for regional country studies.
张琪：
区域国别研究可以使国际传播研究更具象、
更实在、更有生命力。具象是指国际传播研究中“国
际”概念有了确定的外延，例如能更明确地区分性地
研究是对哪些国家或区域的国际传播，对这些国家和
对那些国家的传播学研究成果又会有怎样的异同。实
在是指国际传播研究的目标感和成就感都会更显著，
产出的研究成果也将能更有效地运用于国际传播实践
工作中。生命力是指国际传播研究在特定区域和国别
的扎根与成长，是健康且可持续的。我们从相同学科
目的的角度出发打个比方，区域国别研究相当于分析
各色土壤的成分与环境，国际传播研究相当于分析各
色土壤与不同作物的适配性，二者相一致的目的都是
为了能够良好生长结出硕果。
对于国际传播研究如何进入特定区域和国别，我
建议要密切联动语言和符号有关的学科同时进入，首
先对异文化的传播内容做到更准确和深入地解码、认
知和运用，从而能更有效地发掘特定区域和国别中的
社会、文化与政治、经济等领域的相关研究资源。与
涉及区域和国别的其他学科相比，传播学的特殊性很重
要是在于其研究对象的独树一帜，即媒介与信息。信息
时代。无论是在哪个国家、哪个区域，媒介与信息在量
上都是非常丰富的或者正在丰富中。“矿山”不同、“矿
藏”各异，传播学还需要大量的开采挖掘工作。而在这
些工作中，信息技术工具的应用，或许也能够成就国际
传播研究的独特性。如果有，这也将会对社会科学研究
方法作出重要且独特的贡献。
姬德强：
针对特定区域国别进行精准研究是国际传
播工作迈入新阶段的标志，代表了从应激式被动研究
向有目的的主动研究的转型，也代表了从以形象建设
为核心的“走出去”到关系建设为目标的“走进去”
的转型。在这个意义上，中国的国际传播研究开始有
了更多的自觉意识，表现在三个方面：第一，充分意识
到国际社会是复杂多元甚至多变的，而不是铁板一块
的，更不是简单西方化的，即便西方也是需要被解构
的；第二，充分意识到需要深耕一个地区或国家才能真
正推动有效的国际传播，不管是控制论意义上的传播
效果还是文化论意义上的传播价值；第三，充分意识到
国际传播研究的区域国别转向需要与中国的海外利益
和海外关系相关联，也就是在中短期内并不需要全面
铺开研究所有国家，而是按照急迫顺序和重要程度，
分步骤开展和深入。进入国际传播和区域国别的交叉
领域，目前有两个可以考虑的方向：首先是传统的传媒
规范理论，仍然需要依托经验研究进行拓展，也就是
图绘各个国家和相似地区的媒介体制及其在数字化等
进程中的变化，深度去西方化和彻底去殖民化是重塑
传媒规范理论合法性和解释力的基石；其次是作为基础
理论的跨文化传播研究，涉及语言、族裔、身份等构
成要素，核心是对作为平等交流方的他者的深度描绘
和内部阐释。
郭金月：
在理论层面，国际传播学需要发现更多
一致性，找到最大公约数，提炼出相对来说放之四海
而皆准的规律。不过，作为社会科学的一个分支，近
现代国际传播学总结的所谓一般规律，主要是基于
方世界的经验。对于致力于发现普遍性的理论研究，
国际传播学需要将更多国家和地区特别是亚非拉国家
纳入考察视野。在实践层面，由于各国或地区在文
化传统、政治制度、宗教信仰、思维方式和社情民意
等方面的情况千差万别，各地之间的信息传递存在独
特性。要准确地解码有关国家或区域对己方传递的信
息，有针对性做好面向对象国家或区域的信息传递，
都需要对有关国家或区域有全面了解和深刻理解。基
辛格在其回忆录中曾指出，在资讯快速流动的时代，
大使馆的主要任务已不再是传递消息，而是进行“政
治翻译”。国际传播在观照国际的同时，也不能缺少地
域视角。在国际传播的框架之下，还可以细分为国家
或地区对外传播、向国家或地区进行传播和国家与地
区传播特点等更加具体的研究领域。
陈须隆：
国际传播要实现分众化、精准化，就离
不开对传播对象和目的地的深入了解，这就必然要求
特定区域和国别研究要“深下去”，这也正是区域国
别研究对国际传播的重要意义和巨大价值所在。惟有
深入细致系统地开展特定区域和国别研究，才能真正
实现国际传播的精准化，做到因地制宜、有的放矢，
切实推进一域一策、一国一策、一群一策等，使传播
内容、传播方式更加有效，并能作出更加科学的传播
效果评估。进入这一交叉领域，可从最具传播学意义
的区域国别研究的典型对象和重大问题开始，如某个
小岛国面临的气候变化挑战问题、上海合作组织地区
命运共同体的构建问题等。在国际传播与区域国别的
交叉空间，如要凸显传播研究的特殊性，就要研究传
播的主体与客体、传播的内容建设与话语建构、传播
方式的传承与革新，要直面传播鸿沟、后真相与认知
作战等重大现实问题，就要讲好特定区域与国别的故
事，在叙事的多元性、多样性与统一性、共同性之间
取得平衡，发挥国际传播的理念引领与价值塑造等功能。
讨论人：
陈须隆 对外经济贸易大学国际关系学院特聘教授
郭金月 中国国际问题研究院美国研究所副研究员
张 琪 环球时报研究院执行院长
姬德强 中国传媒大学教授、媒体融合与传播国家重点实验室研究员
文章来源：
《对外传播》2024.02
