China-Russia digital media cooperation forum boots up in Wuxi

More efforts should be made to strengthen digital media cooperation between China and Russia to inject more vitality into the strategic partnership, said participants at the third China-Russia Internet Media Forum.

Kicking off in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, on Friday, the forum hosted around 200 attendees from ministries, research institutes, mainstream media and internet companies from the two countries.

Yang Xiaowei, deputy director of the Cyberspace Administration of China, said at the forum's opening ceremony that stronger ties between the Chinese and Russian media are of great importance at a time of rising protectionism and unilateralism. This year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Beijing and Moscow, and new opportunities have been ushered in regarding cooperation between the two nations' internet-based media.

Apart from more frequent exchanges of ideas and experiences, internet media in both countries should fully adopt new technologies such as big data, 5G and artificial intelligence to convey messages to readers and audiences in more precise and attractive ways, Yang said.

Alexey Volin, Russia's deputy minister of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media, said that not only have leading media organizations from China and Russia been working together more closely over the past few years, but internet media is also playing an increasingly important role in terms of the businesses and regional activities in the two countries. Looking forward, there is huge potential for cooperation in movies, TV programming and computer games between China and Russia.

The next China-Russia Internet Media Forum will be hosted in Taganrog, an industrial city in southwestern Russia, in August, according to Volin.

Zhou Shuchun, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said that the ongoing new information technology reform has helped reshape global communications at a faster pace. Therefore, both Chinese and Russian media have devoted more efforts to build their global communications capability.

"In this sense, Chinese and Russian internet media and companies can team up to convey to the rest of the world the highlights of the two countries' collaboration. In this way, more objective voices can be uttered and the interests of both countries can be better protected," Zhou said.

Ma Li, president of the China Internet Development Foundation, pointed out that media development and cooperation have faced unprecedented challenges and opportunities while the proliferation of new technologies has made media distribution channels more accessible.

"Emerging technologies such as big data and AI should be more deeply integrated into the media industry so that the internet can ... benefit a larger population," she said.

The three-day forum is being held in Wuxi for the first time. Li Xiaomin, the city's Party secretary, said at the opening ceremony that one of the top tasks for media professionals is to make better use of new technologies and innovative methods to enhance the effectiveness, influence and credibility of communication.

Also announced at the forum was the Wuxi Consensus on China-Russia Internet Media Cooperation. As the consensus pointed out, the two countries should upgrade and promote internet media cooperation, which is in line with the joint statement announced by the two nations in early June that aims to upgrade China-Russia bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for the new era.

With more frequent exchanges between Chinese and Russian internet media professionals, more visually appealing, intelligent and interactive products will be delivered to readers and audiences in both countries. A dialogue mechanism should be set up to facilitate comprehensive cooperation regarding internet communication, according to the consensus.

Meanwhile, internet media of both countries should focus on the application of new technologies to enhance their communication precision and efficiency.

The hosts of this year's forum are China Daily, the China Internet Development Foundation and the Jiangsu Cyberspace Affairs Commission.