Editor’s Note: Alumni of Shanghai International Studies University (SISU),Wang Guoqing, spokesman for the CPPCC (Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference), and Du Ping, a Phoenix TV reporter, were active in a 2016 post-Congress press conference. 

n the crowded Great Hall of the People where a press conference – the first significant event of the 2016 Chinese “Two Sessions” – were being held, a journalist asked in a smile: “What do you think about an recent riot in Hong Kong (HK)? Will it cause the Chinese central government to change policy on HK? What responsibilities should HK and Macau members of the CPPCC assume to carry for stable development?” The asker was Du Ping wearing a red scarf with a yellow notebook in hand, which was impressive as his powerful question.

The new spokesman for CPPCC answered decisively in a peaceful tone: “We oppose violent interference with Hong Kong by any force…It is important to fully and faithfully appreciate and implement the policy of ‘one country, two systems’.” He read the policy details on his computer screen, explaining to journalists that he dared not say a word wrong.”

This conversation is unusual for SISUers, as the asker and answerer are SISU 1986 and 1975 alumni respectively. 

Wang Guoqing: “I’m just passing the test.”

In May 1972, Wang Guoqing returned to Shanghai as an educated young man from the Great Northern Wilderness in northeast China and was soon enrolled into School of English Studies of SISU, which name was Shanghai Foreign Language Institute at that time. Three years later, Wang was graduated and worked as a translator in the external English group of the Central Bureau of Broad-casting Administration. He studied in Canada in the next year and then worked in a series of national media institutions including China Radio International (CRI), Chinese International Communication Office and Information Office of the State Council.

He said: “When I become a spokesman for CPPCC, I’m not only speaking to Chinese media and the public, but also to the world. I hope that I could help the world more clearly hear China’s voice.”

When it comes to the ways of disseminating China’s voice in international media , Wang encouraged to establish Chinese own discourse system by adhering to One-China policy and promoting intercultural communication.

Wang pointed out that being an eligible spokesman or spokeswoman needs political quality, a broader knowledge base and strong skills in cross-cultural communication, which coincides with SISU’s motto, “integrity, vision and academic excellence”. To prepare this press conference, he has worked for more than one month with more than ten hours a day, collecting over 1,400 questions and information of over 60 departments.”

When being asked about his first performance as a spokesman, Wang marked himself 60, while many media from domestic and abroad used words like “straightforward”, “full of information”. Some foreign journalists even described his performance as a “perfect” show. 

Du Ping: All the experiences are valuable 

Du Ping, one of the first students who took SISU’s dual degrees of English and International Journalism, was a well-known person in School of Journalism and Communication. Although he has been out of school 30 years, he often spends leisure time delivering lectures to SISU students and participating in various university activities. 

Once he was interviewed by JC Alumni, he regarded himself as a good learner, rather than a conventionally good student. He said that a broad Chinese knowledge base and his professional capability of commenting affairs were both benefited from considerable reading. Du Ping still remember the books he read in SISU’s library when he was a undergraduate student, including the Times, English version of A Dream in Red Mansions. 

This time Du Ping attends the Chinese two sessions as a journalist of Phoenix Satellite Television. He interviewed in the first press conference and also released many news articles about the two sessions in his own news platform called “The vision of Du Ping”. Among those articles, one news comment named Journalist should behave himself gets a page view of near 40,000. 

Du Ping described his news platform as “remain neutral, travel the world; analyze the current situation calmly, comment the world enthusiastically”.

These words reflects Du Ping’s professional experience.

He once worked in CRI (China Radio International) and then worked as the chief journalist to the European Union and NATO, the director of the ministry of the current politics and chief foreign affairs journalist. It is sure that he had got many honors and rewards, but he chose to leave China at the peak of his career and went to Singapore to be an editor. And when he finally became the chief editor after four years, he left his post again. He was invited to hold the post of commentator in many television programmes. He thought he should continue being a student of television. 

Du Ping changed his work from Beijing to Hong Kong, from radio broadcasting to news editing to TV news commenting. Some people may consider his choice as torment, but Du Ping’s opinion towards his experience is the same as what Wang Guoqing has said, “To a man who has strong desire to succeed, all the experiences are valuable.”

Every generation has great figures. Maybe you will be the next, many years later, just calm and rigorous like Wang Guoqing, or elegant and bright like Du Ping. As long as you are brave enough to think and do, you will eventually speak your own voice in public eyes.