Building China’s Global Image Through Mega-Events: Causes And Consequences

With the rise of China’s impact in global politics and economy, there has been a surgeof Chinese influence around the world in several aspects. This is demonstrated, particularly,by the impact China has held in mega-events over the last couple of years. With the2008Beijing Olympic Games and the2010Shanghai World Expo and a potential2026bid forthe World Cup, China has been staged front and center when it comes to mega-eventhosting. When discussing and analyzing mega-events in the context of political, social, andeconomical gains and losses, several factors need to be addressed. Mega-events arecelebrated globally for their ability to unite international interests, even if for just a meagercouple of months, as well as showcase the host nation in a positive light to an intriguedglobal audience. There are also additional benefits that come alongside mega-event hostingsuch as upgraded infrastructure, local economic gains, strengthening domestic diplomacy,as well as improving global public diplomacy. The potential benefits for mega-eventhosting seem substantial and numerous, which is why several nations will compete for theprivilege to host any one of these prestigious events.However, in most cases of mega-events, the economic impact is hugely exaggeratedand criticisms of the host nation are also introduced alongside the positive media attention.This severely compromises the attractiveness of mega-event hosting to a significant degreeas nations shift its analysis from the number of benefits received from mega-events, to amore comprehensive study as to whether or not mega-event hosting would produce anytangible benefits at all. From a purely statistical standpoint, mega-event hosting producesminimal benefits for a host nation; however, there are extraneous factors that allow forcertain nations to reap several advantages. Fully developed countries around the world haveno authentic need for modern infrastructure or enhanced public diplomacy capabilities andthus only focus on economic benefits. Developing countries, on the other hand, require astronger effort in order for the nation to try to compete on a level international playing field.So vast infrastructural improvements and global attention to catalyze potential foreigninvestment and political significance are more substantial for developing nations in theprocess of analyzing the advantages of mega-event hosting.Even with China at the forefront of every political and economic issue in recent years,China remains categorized within the context of a developing nation, whose primary goal isto develop its infrastructure throughout the country and stimulate local economic growth.Furthermore, China’s steep rise has drawn a number of criticisms throughout the globe andany chance to shine a positive, non-threatening beam on the nation, as is a direct byproductof mega-events, would be a welcoming supplement in China’s further development.